Painting

Over the years my paintings have evolved not only in their visual form, but also in the very materials that give them life.  These paintings are all created with hand made oil paints that are either modern pigments that I purchased or natural pigments that I collected. I have mostly worked with oil paints in the past, but I am now exploring other mediums such as encaustic and watercolor.

Regardless of the source of the pigment or the type of the binder, paint for me is a material that allows we to work freely without a final outcome in mind.  The creative process is inspired and influenced by the exploration of these materials and there capabilities as a medium that enables art to be produced.  My interests in making paint came resulted in wanting to work with materials that are economically more affordable as well as a means of quality control.  Over the years, I began to question the impacts of these modern pigments and their manufacturing on my health as well as the environment in which they were extracted or made.  As a result, I began to explore the history of pigment and paints of the old masters of Europe, but other cultures from around the world.  This exploration of traditional pigments began me on a journey to find locally sourced materials that could become a part of my own artistic palette. 

These paintings are from a collection of work made in different places where I have lived over the years.  The materials are influential in the creative process because of their ability to inspire and bring to life forms that I would have not even been able to imagine.  Much of my work is a balance between creating with my conscious and subconscious mind.  The materials themselves enable me to evoke images through the combination of color, texture, form, line, and space.  It is this exploration of the paint that I begin to see a composition or form that resonates with me.  It is a constant give and take of applying and removing paint to uncover the layers not only only within the paint, but also in the world in which I live.  

The physical environment and the existing conditions of my own physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual being influence each painting.  At times the past, present, and future of these environments find themselves on the surface of the work of art.  It is this mystery and engagement with the very materials that inspire me to create.

FULL MOON CIRCUS

Human Nature

SNAKES AND HERONS