Extensive studies into styles of painting, particular pieces and artists and their backgrounds in social and historical context influence how my work takes shape. I immerse myself in this subject matter, invest my life and energy and affect a Newtonian result when the same energy I’ve ingested then recycles and pours from me onto canvas.
The typical characteristics of my work - - heavy texture, inclusion of divergent, interesting found materials, strong color, and the shape of mass and volume - - all converge and flow through a channel in my mind, subconsciously.
Often, visual cues provide the departure point; a picture, a painting, or some combination of pictures of paintings that offer perspectives I haven’t seen before. Then things take shape and form in my mind. I look at a canvas and consider its shape and size and reckon how best to represent my ideas in this white space.
The textural background is a major consideration because it’s the framework from which my images grow. Embedded textiles and strong, gestural paint strokes form a robust subtext that shapes and affects the development of the portrait. It’s not exactly magic or science, but something mysterious and wonderful slowly forms and builds in front of my eyes, under my brush strokes.
