Debut the New

My self-portraits are a direct reflection of my internal condition. The ideas I choose to visually illustrate are based on personal reflection. My work is the culmination of deep introspection on the person I think I am and the person I want to become. Photography becomes a form of self-healing. The images produced are a vessel to hold my thoughts, emotions, and feelings. A physical space to discard and store the weaker portions of myself as I continually strive to evolve into a better person and, hopefully, debut a stronger and wiser version of myself.

My self-portraits are a direct reflection of my internal condition. The ideas I choose to visually illustrate are based on personal reflection. My work is the culmination of deep introspection on the person I think I am and the person I want to become. Photography becomes a form of self-healing. The images produced are a vessel to hold my thoughts, emotions, and feelings. A physical space to discard and store the weaker portions of myself as I continually strive to evolve into a better person and, hopefully, debut a stronger and wiser version of myself.

My practice reimagines the life of discarded interior latex house paints. Using mainly mistints and repurposed pigments, I harden the paint into free standing forms removing it from its intended skeletal wall structure. The paint has a life of its own, a body of its own, and creates a skin of its own. Both skin and paint protect, cover, contain, excrete, and decorate the homes we live in. I look to create parallels between the paint and our bodies to address the vulnerability of the human existence, while allowing the material its own level of agency in its newfound life.

My practice reimagines the life of discarded interior latex house paints. Using mainly mistints and repurposed pigments, I harden the paint into freestanding forms, removing it from its intended skeletal wall structure. The paint has a life of its own, a body of its own, and creates a skin of its own. Both skin and paint protect, cover, contain, excrete, and decorate the homes we live in. I look to create parallels between the paint and our bodies to address the vulnerability of the human existence while allowing the material its own level of agency in its newfound life.

The pandemic gave me space to appreciate the small things that can bring joy. I learned to love every shadow and cherish every sunset. I found comfort in the slow days and warm sun. I would wait all day to watch the house fill with a warm golden glow. There was a special magic about this time that always helped distract from the anxieties that plague the soul. I felt protected by the light and reminded to not let the darkness take away from the world's beauty.

I am "debuting the new" through this photograph by the way that it was taken. I used a pinhole lens to achieve its look, a form of photography that isn't commonly used. The topic of this piece is also something that isn't often talked about: how antidepressants can hurt you while they are helping. The blurred effects of the pinhole show the brain fog and the lost sense of self that can occur while taking these medications.

I am "debuting the new" through this photograph by the way that it was taken. I used a pinhole lens to achieve its look, a form of photography that isn't commonly used. The topic of this piece is also something that isn't often talked about: how antidepressants can hurt you while they are helping. The blurred effects of the pinhole show the brain fog and the lost sense of self that can occur while taking these medications.

While Monet's garden and water lilies are well-recognized as an endearing symbol in the art world, the answer to their popularity lies in how they serve as a muse to countless generations of artists. This is my interpretation of Monet's garden. Far different from the original impressionist style, my lotuses can best be described as new. Paying homage to the countless painted lotuses that have come before them, they reside in the (sometimes) still pond of my bright imagination.

Wildfire is the first time I have used a technique called wet felting to shape the wool fibers. For me, making this piece was a debut into the diverse world of fiber arts and how they can be involved in every facet of our lives, even without our knowledge. Though subconsciously I knew fibers are flexible, I never imagined that with only soap, water, and pressure, I could make forms as dynamic as this fire scorching through the darkness of the night. 

I separate every visual thing in existence as either synthetic/human made or natural/as it appears. Perfection plagues science and spirituality, but not nature. I can try to make a perfect sphere but will never succeed, as on the atomic levels things are always moving and vibrating. In this life, perfection is the slot machine winner of random events that converge to make an occasion really special. This is the debut of my answer to the dissociated perception of our existence, away from the existence we created versus the existence we inhabit, towards a practice which equally values our creations and our position.

Abstraction is the universal language. When I make visual art that does not include reference to societal culture, anyone can read my poems. Here, I am introducing the debut of my universal language. In these visual poems, if the artistic elements—line, shape, form, color, value, texture, and mark-making—are the words, the principles of design— contrast, balance, rhythm, pattern, movement, and variety—are the structure. I'm writing poems about the anomaly that is the pattern-based physics of the universe and the patternless act of possessing a consciousness.

This is a quick study of my favorite model, Lonnie. I often make studies to prepare for larger paintings but sometimes the study captures the feeling I’m after. When that happens there is no need to continue further.