Artist Statement


I paint the commonplace objects that surround me, loosely suggesting my internal and familial narratives,resulting in domestic scenes with simple yet layered story-lines. And while narrative is definitely an important driving force in my work, it always remains subservient to the larger formal concerns. To this end, I may run through several narratives in the course of any one painting, in a sense, finding my subject through the process.

Just as I am not bound to the story lines that initially incite a work, I am also not bound to any one way of constructing a piece. And while working from direct observation is my preferred method, I do not consider myself a perceptual purist, regularly finding it necessary to employ other methods of construction. My works are often a composite, formulated from observing several set-ups within my studio. To experiment with major compositional or color adjustments I often use tools like Photoshop or simple paper collage; cutting, pasting, adjusting (whether digitally or physically) until it feels right. Then I apply the changes to painting, working my way around until the image works.

I am on a never-ending search to capture the isolate domestic moments that surround me while fully attending to the formal structure of the picture itself.  My intent is to make images that engage the viewer through both subject matter and the underlying aesthetic; creating visual situations that challenge the passivity of the spectator.


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