I paint nature-based abstractions that exist within my optical unconscious. Carl Einstein, a German art historian and art critic claimed an artist should open up "to the ability of a picture's power to alter one's vision" and not be degraded by "becoming illustrators of someone else's creation”. All art begins with an idea, a starting point. My starting point can be anything as long as it is something tangible, something I can relate to - having a personal connection is key because it allows me to expand upon what I know, make new discoveries, explore unknown territories and build new realities. My paintings are a menagerie of what I love and what I fear. Through painting, I conquer fears that are nothing more than self-proclaimed prophecies. A painting that begins with something as simple as a blood test result can take me full circle, creating fantastic environments from something I fear into something I love.
Similar to an abstract expressionist whose work is spontaneous and unplanned, I enjoy using techniques to push the boundaries of the medium, building layers upon layers of paint, allowing the painting to grow according to a physical response to the medium, while at the same time giving it freedom to go off course and have a life of its own. Sometimes the physical act of painting itself becomes a fear, specifically a fear of the unknown. A common practice I use is construction/destruction/reconstruction. During the construction of a painting, it is easy to fall in love with specific areas, causing other areas to be neglected. Destructing those favorite parts early on (sometimes painting over it entirely with translucent layers of titanium white, or scraping off layers to reveal colors below) allows me to move past the initial “affair” and move forward in a new direction, reconstructing it into something more than originally planned, but still related to the original concept. As decisions are made on the fly by experimenting with these different techniques, I am surprised by results which reveal hidden details that are a reinterpretation of my own inner reality – a physical presentation of intricate thoughts and ideas, an exposure of conquering my fear of the unknown.