My paintings contain a figurative subject serving as protagonist, but the setting of the depicted scene, as well as costuming and physical props associated with the portrayed character—such as a flag, a broken mirror, or a cluttered table-- serve to inform and at times overpower the identity of the figure itself. My paintings are not simply portraits of a person or group of people, but rather a depiction of a location, a time, a fleeting moment in a fabricated history.
Using the material of paint, I utilize cultural symbols and visual cues, often drawing on the language of cinema, as in “Sacrament”, and the mechanical process of photography, as shown in “Chief”.
Paint offers the material tactility to imitate life, and is malleable enough to be edited and strained through the filter of the artist: the mind and hand as applicator; the eye as receptor.
In presenting to the viewer a set of archetypes and symbols, I balance the viewer’s recognition of this imagery with a delayed interest, inviting the viewer to desire more information. In this way, I act as the director of a film that has never been shot, balancing the impact of the constructed moment with the potential for both a back-story and a conclusion that may never appear.
Using the material of paint, I utilize cultural symbols and visual cues, often drawing on the language of cinema, as in “Sacrament”, and the mechanical process of photography, as shown in “Chief”.
Paint offers the material tactility to imitate life, and is malleable enough to be edited and strained through the filter of the artist: the mind and hand as applicator; the eye as receptor.
In presenting to the viewer a set of archetypes and symbols, I balance the viewer’s recognition of this imagery with a delayed interest, inviting the viewer to desire more information. In this way, I act as the director of a film that has never been shot, balancing the impact of the constructed moment with the potential for both a back-story and a conclusion that may never appear.