This summer I was honored to be awarded a stay at Cill Rialaig Artist Residency, in County Kerry, in the southwest of Ireland. I spent two weeks working in this rural, remote outpost, in a restored pre-famine cottage on a cliff overlooking the Wild Atlantic and the Skelligs (where one of the latest episodes of "Star Wars" was filmed). From Ireland I traveled to Stockholm, Sweden, where I will be curating an exhibition in 2018.

At Cill Rialaig I worked on a series of paintings based on the Great Auk, a penguin-like bird made extinct in 1840. It was killed for its feathers and clubbed for food, and for its beautiful eggs that were collected as treasures. This bird will hopefully be "de-extincted" in the next few years, on an island off England.

I've moved studios from one big one in San Diego to two smaller spaces: one in Los Angeles (mainly for storage and showroom) and one in San Diego (mainly for working). Although I'm not giving up on San Diego, my focus towards LA reflects the future--the art scene is so big and exciting there, I have to be a part of it. The LA studio is in the Moon Huts, in El Sereno, just east of Downtown, near Cal State LA. Exciting!

Working on two big shows this summer, a Hill&Stump solo show at Bunny Gunner in Joshua Tree (opens Aug. 8) and my own exhibition at Art Produce Gallery in San Diego (reception Aug. 22). Plus getting ready to teach at Donovan State Prison, which should really rock my world, in a good way, I hope!

I've got an upcoming book with RothCo Press based on my "Sexy Jesus" paintings. Exciting!