Statement

My paintings explore constructs of our culture that persist despite their dysfunction, such as imperialism, hierarchy, and a mentality of scarcity. By creating a poetic tension between found objects and visual elements, I guide viewers into uncertainty and capitalize on this active state of mind to ignite awareness of their own emotional connections with these systems of power.

Making art is an experience that mirrors life itself: it is a constantly evolving and unfolding dynamic process. With each piece, I direct the content just enough to inspire intrigue and then invite the viewer into that life process by giving them the opportunity to project their own meaning and make their own connections to and within the piece. This is the heart of abstract work: gifting the viewer with the opportunity to experience transcendence through creative synthesis of personally meaningful opposites.

Through first connecting the viewer with their own experiences and then inviting an expansion of viewpoint, I hope to provoke not just an intellectual understanding of complexity, but a visceral experience of it. This felt awareness of complexity is the heart of compassion and the beginning of healing.