I have been spending a lot of time in downtown and midtown Kansas City in the last few weeks. There has been several songs written, another painting is finished and multiple opportunities to take some pictures.
Intersecting Lines #2 July 2025
Dragonfly en macro Canon RF 50mm
Eastern Tailed Blue Butterfly en macro Canon RF50mm
morning sunlight reflecting off of my paint brushes in July 2025
I’ve had many opportunities to paint, make music, take pictures and create digital art in the last few weeks and I have taken advantage of all of them. Here are some recent examples I wanted to share.
This is a painting I finished recently (7/25) called Intersecting Lines #1. There are several paintings in this series and this is the first one I was able to finish. Acrylic on canvas with matte varnish.
I took this picture in early July 2025 with the intentions of using it for this graphic design idea I had in my head. Created in Photoshop with original photo taken on top of the WW1 museum in Kansas City, Mo. I am very pleased with my growing ability and discipline to realize these ideas into a finished piece of art I can share.
I’ve heard this all my life. “You are either an Elvis fan or a Beatles fan.” This debate been tagged in movies and has pretty much permeated pop culture. My understanding of this debate is a matter of how their music was recorded and presented. The Beatles were into multitrack recording, doing overdubs and in essence making studio work and the act of recording a part of the songwriting process. Elvis, on the other hand recorded most of his work with a live band. There were some multitrack style music in Elvis’ catalog. However, when we think of Elvis and his songs the ones that are most famous are live recordings with session musicians. This live recording vs multitrack recording debate has been around as long as Elvis and The Beatles. Maybe longer. Personally I like the idea of crafting a song and having a workflow that utilizes what sounds good and edits out what isn’t working for the song. Live recording is great and definitely has a place….
I finished two paintings today. Both are some of the most recent that I started which are Mixed Media Abstract. I have several other paintings that aren’t finished yet. I journey beyond abstract into cubism and impressionism. All of my paintings will soon be available for sale on Etsy. My mixed media abstract paintings will be numbered. My theme paintings (will) all have proper names.
Mixed Media #1
Mixed Media #2
Summertime is an entire vibe in Kansas City. This is one of the only places I have lived that people don’t leave town for the Summer. We have everything you could possibly want to do here. Beaches, amusement parks, concerts, baseball, soccer. There’s no shortage of great things to take pictures of. I have also been working on some original artwork/graphic design for the music project Paper Sirens. Here is some of my recent work I wanted to share.
Canon RF 50mm
Canon RF 50mm
Paper Sirens original artwork
Paper Sirens original artwork.
This time of your for an HVAC tech is really busy. I’m blessed beyond measure for what this trade provides for my life. My ability to pursue photography, art and music among those provisions. Soon I will share some of my paintings on this page. Currently in photography my emphasis is on macro, photo impressionism and street photography. Here is some of my recent work since my last post.
Birds Foot Trefoil taken with Canon RF50mm
Dandelion en macro Canon RF50mm
The last month has brought a lot of creative endeavors and tests (finals). Finishing up the semester strong and starting several projects including the jam situation with some friends that is looking more like a band now. We added a drummer that I know really well. Very pleased with this outcome. Also doing several paintings and photography projects. The next few months will be all about maximizing music and art output. Here are some of the pictures I have taken in the last few weeks. All shot with the same Canon RF50mm f1.8 lens that I have been working with lately.
The Western Auto Building 2107 Grand Blvd Kansas City, MO
a lovely splash of color found in downtown Kansas City, MO
“Knowledge more lasting than bronze.”
I’ve had a lot of good fortune with only a few minor setbacks so far this year. I have been playing music with a couple friends on the South side of town once a week. Drums, bass and guitar. Also producing some original video clips to add original music over along with a lot of photography. I have been using Adobe Photoshop, Indesign, Lightroom and Premiere Pro to do most of my work.
Layered image created with original photography inside Photoshop.
I am not going to take any classes this Summer. I have been going o school for almost two years straight and I am going to take a break for a couple of months to focus on creating some art and music to share. I have nine new books that I haven’t been able to ready yet also. Here are some photos I captured recently near the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
-taken in Midtown Kansas City near Nelson-Atkins Museum RF 50mm
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Canon RF 50mm
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Canon RF 50mm
I have recently put a lot of thought into buying a small sailboat that I can take out on the lakes and I decided to proceed forward with those plans. Most fellas my age get motorcyles or sports cars. I’m close to five weeks away from school being over for the year. In the coming months I am putting more focus on some new music I have been working on the last few months. I have a lot of ideas for imagery and I have put myself into a position where I can do it on my own terms with an actual budget and quality tools. I have been working on Macro Photography with the recent acquisition of a Canon RF 50mm f1.8 lens. Needless to say, I have been shooting a lot of pictures. By Summer I hope to get a true macro lens. Here are some recent macro photography examples of mine that I wanted to share.
A small cacti pokes up from the forest floor on a sandy hillltop near Lake Jacomo early April 2025. Canon RF50mm f1.8 lens
Some beautiful Tulips poking up through some Purple (Henbit) dead Nettle in Grain Valley, MO. early April 2025 Canon RF 50mm f1.8
As we get closer to Spring I am looking forward to getting out and finding more opportunities to take pictures. There is no shortage of interesting things to take pictures of where I live. The workload for all the classes I signed up for is very real at this point and after next week I will be enjoying Spring Break. I don’t have any plans yet, just a few ideas. I had several ideas for projects and one was making an entire page on here with pictures of all the fountains in Kansas CIty. There are a lot of them and it wouldn’t be right without the fountains at Kauffman. I really don’t think you have experienced this city without feeling the mist from the fountains at Kauffman or got a splash of water from a homerun landing in the fountain. My Dad told me a story about going with the boy scouts as a child to see the Kansas City Athletics play baseball at Municipal Satadium which was at 22nd and Brooklyn. The Athletics are in Las Vegas now and the Royals have been the home team for well over 56 years now. I’m looking forward to Spring and opening day. It’s been a long Winter for me. Most of my artistic output this year will be primarily photo and video as I work on developing them as skill sets. I have a tremendous amount of creative energy and just using it with music seems to be limiting myself to just one form of expression. I’m finding more balance every day.
BMA Tower/One Park Place 700 W 31st St Kansas City, MO
In 1963 when this building opened it was the first high rise tower in Kansas City after city hall which interestingly, was built in 1936. One Park Place sits three miles South of downtown across from MCC Penn Valley campus on 31st St. I took this picture in late February 2025.
I cannot recall a Winter we had snow and cold weather like this. Perhaps as a child I had a few as we lived further North.
There’s something about pushing through a bitter cold day to finish your tasks then heading home to warm up after the day is done. I would love to record an album or collection of music during a Winter like this with some fellow musicians someday.
This upcoming week I have some Mid Term Exams coming up and I am looking forward to some warmer weather for a few days at least as I have had lingering flu-like symptoms for a couple weeks now. 02/17/25 JMD
Jason Michael Dunnington 