"I had always envisioned Star Wars as a massive line of action figures and accessories. I developed the film and its characters in such a way as to be easily transferred to popular toys. I created the outer space setting for the story in order to be able to produce fantastic and memorable vehicles, ships, and playsets for the toy line. As a child I always enjoyed playing with toys and accessories from popular movie serials like Buck Rogers and I wanted the children of today to be able to have a similar experience with their toys.

As a marketer I was frustrated with the toy making technology that existed at the time. But we released the first line of Star Wars action figures in 1978 and were overwhelmed by their popularity. At that time no other manufacturer had produced a toy line like that. We were very cutting edge in spite of our modest technology."

Then in the early nineties I had a chance to tour a manufacturing facility in China. I was amazed at the breakthroughs they had achieved in toy making. It was then that I decided that the technology was finally available to produce the kind of toys I had originally envisioned for Star Wars.

I was no longer limited by external factors and was finally able to fulfill my original vision."

If I were a billionaire I'd make a customized replica of the Batmobile. Then I'd get a cool Batman suit and some neat gadgets. I'd drive my Batmobile up and down the freeway stopping to help stranded people.

When asked if I was really Batman I'd have to say, "No, I'm actually just one of Batman's helpers. You see, he's busy monitoring crime from his secret layer in the North Pole."

I'm a web developer by trade but art has always been one of my first passions. Early last year after going through some old artwork I came to the realization that I can do a drawing or painting and throw it in a drawer and still have it ten years from now, while nothing I've done on the web from that long ago is still around. Nothing done on the web has even close to the same longevity -- it's an ephemeral medium. Sometimes it feels like ice sculpture that's melting away before you're even finished.

While I enjoy web development and I love programming, if I had to choose a life without painting or a life without coding... well it wouldn't be that hard of a decision.

And so it seemed a better use of free time to get back into doing art on a regular basis. For similar reasons I've also been trying to focus on simplicity, and making art without a computer. There's a unique gestalt that happens with analog materials that you'll never get when working in PhotoShop. It's also much more direct. There's no intermediation. Even when using an airbrush, the tool has a way of forcing its own style on you such that all airbrush artwork tends to look the same.

Also when it's done, it's done. There's no infinite dials and opacity layers to fiddle with. If you're not happy with something start over or just accept it and move on.