Artist Statement

Layers. Color. Chaos. Intent. If I had to choose the themes around which my art has evolved, it would involve those four words.

I like to alternate between painting feverishly (which I refer to as the Chaos pieces) with a more measured, calculated approach (which I call the Intent pieces).

When creating Chaos pieces I often use a mixed media approach. Favorite elements to add to the canvas are tissue paper and other printed material (magazines, newspapers, books), sewing items (fabric, thread, and appliques), items inspired by nature (real butterflies or honeycombs) and mirrors. I like to work in layers, often working for 3 months or more on one piece. The under-layer is the first to be put on canvas, and it is like the skeleton, which will be covered again and again by layers of paint and material. The bones of the painting are what hold the composition together; without those bones the painting would fall apart, in the same way a human body cannot exist without a skeleton. It is meant to be covered and it belongs solely to its owner. That is how I see my paintings- I create the skeleton, the muscles, the bits that hold it all together, but you can't see it all until you look very closely. The under-layers always show through here and there. Just like with people, you only get to see the underneath by studying intently.

The Intent pieces are created using a two part process. First, an image (either from a photograph I have taken or from a stock image) is scanned and Photoshopped by myself, changing much of its original features, manipulating it as I wish. Secondly, the image is digitally printed onto vinyl, removing the artist from the organic, hands-on, traditional method of art creation. The stripped down original image is then segmented by me, when I draw lines on the canvas to break up the picture plane. From this point, I simply fill in the blanks with color, much like a paint-by-number is done by anyone wanting to create art but needing guidelines and instruction first. Marrying the ideas of technology and high art; but bringing in the notion of novelty and the importance of reproduction, process, and the value of a "fill in the blank" canvas placed in a fine art context.

Works in Progress

Bird in Color
26 x 48
oil on canvas




1950s Bedroom
24.75 x 16
oil on vinyl digital print




Five Strange Girls
19.5 x 19.25
oil on vinyl digital print

Other Paintings

Orchids with Eyes
12 x 18
oil on canvas

I Want Wings
36 x 20
oil and paper on canvas





Flower Garden
12 x 48
oil on masonite



Let Me Out
11 x 14
oil on canvas



Luau
24 x 24
oil on wood




Deer
24 x 18
oil on canvas

Please Stay, I need you
48 x 40
oil and paper on canvas

Chaos Paintings

Chaos with Birds
38 x 42
oil and paper on canvas





Chaos with Fabric and Fishnet
48 x 40
oil, latex, fabric, fishnet, found objects on canvas




Chaos with Nests
24 x 30
oil, latex, spray paint, found objects, nail polish, fabric on canvas



Chaos with Butterflies
24 x 36
oil, plastic gemstones, real butterflies on canvas






Chaos Painting with Grey, Pink, and Yellow
10 x 16
oil on canvas





Chaos Wall Mural
Latex Interior Paint on Finished Wall

Intent Paintings

Intent with 3 girls in Reds and Yellows
57.25 x 32
oil on vinyl digital print

Intent with Bright Sky
48 x 36
oil on vinyl digital print

Intent with Cloudy Sky
48 x 36
oil on vinyl digital print