Artist Statement

 

I am keenly invested both in the aesthetics of my art practice and in the feeling and meaning from which imagery emerges and is ultimately expressed.  I also study and practice fine art from the perspective of its effects on the body, that is, what we might call the  psychophysiology of art.  The human subject within these paintings explore the body as vessel through which feeling states are expressed.  The pencil drawings, on the other hand, directly depict feelings and motivation that give rise to energy expressed on paper.

 

I used traditional and non-traditional glazing, and direct mark making in the creation of these paintings and drawings.  I chose the medium of paint and pencil because I appreciate the historical tradition and the visual and physical rigor that has prolonged the timelessness of these mediums.  I profoundly value the process from which innovation, originality, and meaning can be experienced through painting and drawing.  The tactile nature of these mediums invites a multi-sensory engagement that reaffirms creating and interacting within three dimensional space.

 

Painting and drawing in these works are an exercise in mysterium tremedum, a process of “unconcealment,” which reveals truth derived from genuine connecting with one’s self through the sensations of the body.  The paintings depict the way a person inhabits the body as ritual expression of personality, consciousness, and spirit for bringing attention to the mysteries of vulnerability and developing subtle understandings of human complexity and compassion.  These paintings look upon the privacy of personal longing to align oneself with the sincerity of the human spirit.