About Me

• For years I have been interested in the visual arts, especially drawing and painting. When I moved to California in 1972, friends introduced me to Buddhist art. Intrigued by the detail, designs, iconography, and use of colors, I began to study Tibetan Buddhist art as well as Buddhist teachings and symbolism. During the last few years, I found that I wanted to work more with this art, and apply it to my personal interests and growth process.

• Circles and flames are shapes that I appreciate and respect. I like to work with them, explore them, and experiment with combinations of these shapes and colors. The circle is the basis for my mandala art pieces. It is the central structure of the mandala and the starting point for all details, colors and symbols. Painting or drawing a mandala is a meditative process for me – a time to think, concentrate, create, and center myself. Rendering the image of the Buddha and creating mandalas is very peaceful.

• These shapes are also reflected in my paintings of plants and rock formations.  Recently, I have been drawing groupings of miniature mandalas that I put as stars above formations such as Half Dome in Yosemite National Park in California and the Wind River Range in Montana.  

- Daniel Meehan

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An Auto-interview:

(Interviewer) What is your favorite painting 

(DM) The one I am working on at this time

(int)  Tell about your background, especially regarding your artwork.(DM)  Okay. I will try to be concise. I was born in the Cyprus Hills area of  Brooklyn, New York City, in 1947 and raised in the Richmond Hill Queens  area nearby.  My dad, Daniel Meehan, taught me lots of things, but the  most important thing was showing me how to paint a straight line.  He  also introduced me to many other things such as fishing, electronics,  photography, carpentry, home repair,  and car maintenance. I liked to  draw as a child and drew cartoons and cowboys all the time. For high  school, I was fortunate enough to receive a modern day “Bauhaus style"  education at the Thomas A. Edison Career and Technical Education High School where I studied sheet metal and machine shop, mechanical  drafting, electronics, wood working, and two years of commercial art.   After high school, I learned how to program computers and worked in a data center in New York City until I was drafted into the US Army during the Vietnam conflict. These computer skills enabled me to serve in an  army computer center and brought me employment until I retired in  2013.  When I was released from military duty, I studied photography at  the New York School of Visual Arts. In 1972 I moved from New York City to San Francisco where I was fortunate to have good friends there who  helped me get established. I loved San Francisco! The city was cool  then, but drugs and crime were starting to increase so I moved to  Berkeley.  Soon, I found computer work in Silicon Valley and moved to  Palo Alto.  All this time, I continued to study and practice art  whenever I could.  I became interested in Tibetan Buddhist mandala and  thangka paintings and studied these art forms. I got married in 1977 and  we raised two children. While the kids were growing up, I didn't have  much time for artwork.  After retiring in 2013, I became interested in  doing art again, and for the last several years I grew again as an  artist and found good energy from making art.  I live in a magical place  with my wife, Alice Newton, on the edge of an ancient northern  California forest in a Mediterranean climate on the San Francisco  Peninsula, home to many Valley Oaks and Live Oaks with their majestic  presence and energy. Our children and grandchildren live nearby.

(int) What genres of art and related fields are you interested in?

(DM) I  have many interests: architecture and architectural elements, Mayan and  Aztec cultures, Roman and Greek cultures and histories, California  history, Western Americana, Tibetan art, Buddhist art, Mexican culture,  Southwestern arts and culture., structural engineering, geology, curves  generated by geometry, Japanese prints, Arctic cultures,  Civil War  History, and music  (rock, jazz, and classical).  I am also interested  in plants and nature. 

(int) What is your art work day like?  Do you have a favorite time to create?

(DM) Mornings are good, afternoons and evenings are fine.  It depends on what is going on in my life. Anytime really.

(int) What are you trying to say?  What is the message behind all this imagery?

(DM)  I consider myself to be a visual explorer. I am interested in shapes,  designs, patterns, forms, lines, colors, and where these come together  and reach a balance.  I usually start with an idea or photograph and use  sketches to develop ideas.  I will take an idea and paint it several  times to get the balance right.  

(int) Where do you find inspiration?

(DM)  Nature and light. Here in California, the light is pure, and is  reflected off of the Pacific Ocean. The sky is a deep inspiring blue.   The light is very positive. 

(int) Tell me about your favorite medium.

(DM)  I have tried many traditional mediums - oil, acrylic, ink, pencil,  watercolor, and photography. My current medium is watercolor because I  have found that using glazing or wash techniques can bring out the rich  essences of colors.  Watercolor paints typically do not form a cohesive  paint layer as do acrylic or oil paints, but simply scatter pigment  particles randomly across the surface of the paper.  The transparency is  caused by the paper being visible between the particles. Watercolors  may appear more vivid than acrylics or oils because the pigments are  laid down in a more pure form with few fillers obscuring the pigment colors.  I usually paint on Arches 400-pound paper. I have applied as  many as 30 washes of colors to some paintings, and I am very satisfied  with the results. I pay attention to the watercolor attributes  of transparency, staining, and granulation to varying degrees.  Transparency is the most important in achieving vibrant vivid colors. 
I hope to return to the oil medium someday. I am very interested in the technique Mischtechnik or mixed technique. 

(int) Thank you.

(DM) You're welcome. I hope we all get to make art in some form.  It is a great and rewarding game and it is fun!