Monster II
^{Oil on corrugated cardboard, 2001, signed lower right}

Size: 12 1/2" x 14 1/2" (including the frame)

I was working with writer Paul Gagnon on a children's book and I was stuck. I had drawn and painted aspects of the story at least four times without any good results. The story was about a work-at-home-dad architect pressed by a deadline for an idea. The climax comes as the father gets his idea from the son he's been chasing away all day as a nuisance. In my frustration with the book I decided to put it aside and instead take its advice and see what my young son was making. Turns out he was spending his time drawing monsters and aliens on corrugated cardboard, so I thought, 'how would an adult do the same?' -Lawrence Strauss