Painting provides me a process driven opportunity to experiment, discover, manipulate, play, and sometimes even tell a story. I value mark making and like to see evidence of the history of the process in the finished painting. Narrative has been a component of my art that allows me to ask questions and make observations. I use whimsy as a means to enliven or to soften the content. Recurring themes and images return to new environments. Images that possess a personal iconography are infused with content from experiences and memories that hold power. I begin by creating an active ground plane, and then working out to the surface, sometimes finding rather than imposing imagery. I enjoy working figuratively, layering, searching for ideas and inspiration from the manipulation of the media, and often but not always embracing a narrative.
Adding papier-mâché sculpture to my studio involvement has been a logical and natural extension to my previous singular focus of two-dimensional work. The process is reductive, starting with foam forms that have been created by gluing construction foam into blocks that can be carved. Papier-mâché mulch and layers of paper finish off the surfaces and ease transitions and contours. The torn paper can communicate a new narrative while holding onto its past. I find myself stacking forms which is another way of layering, bringing elements together in proximity or support, contrasting familiar with fantastic.