Philosophy

There is a picture of Yves Klein’s Leap into the Void tacked to the door of my studio.  I look at it everyday as a projection of myself; a confirmation that I am challenging myself creatively, always moving toward a higher level of learning and artistic maturity. Klein’s performance depicts the uncertainty of whether he will land or fall, but he takes the risk to do something different. My principal objective for making art is to be calculating, constructive and challenging to my growth as an artist and to others with whom I study in order to develop as a strong professional: reflecting the essence Klein’s performance.

Making things has always been an important part of my life.  Drawing and painting come very naturally. I am always trying to confront my natural ability by learning new techniques like video, performance, sculpture, and new technologies.  I began constructing installation work to dare traditional painting and it’s history, challenging it to be more than paint on a canvas. When I work in other mediums I conceptualize the piece like a painting, using string like the texture of brushstrokes or layering paintings on acrylic sheets, deconstructing the canvas. Art history, color, shapes and the formal qualities of objects and textures help develop work that challenges the viewer physically and emotionally while elevating one’s senses.

I believe in learning at both a scholarly level and from one another in order to grow my goals and push the limits of painting to form a new history; balancing theory and practice. For a long time I struggled with the idea that an artist’s goal is create something different that the art community has never seen before.  What I have learned is that it is not about being different from artists of the past, but to continue to soak up inspiration and constantly discover in order to create work that is intellectual and inspiring.  For me, artistic stimulation comes from many different sources.  I look to people for their life experiences, and science because it helps me understand how life experiences are created. Artists working today never cease feeding my motivation: Ann Hamilton’s installations, William Pope L.’s wild performances and political theory, Bill Viola’s tantalizing video work and Jenny Seville’s luscious figures that always make me want to run back to my studio to paint.  My work strives to balance all sources of inspiration through the medium that fits best to exemplify the chosen concept.