Artist Statement

In the creation of abstract art forms, I am both initiating and responding to various inspirational catalysts, ranging from diverse issues that we humans must deal with on the one hand, to romantic notions of nature that were prevalent in days past, on the other.

My curiosity about arcane systems that in some way serve to explain our world has me constantly posing what if type questions and exploring ways of noting my observations, and this ask-answer sequence fuels my creative muse.  One particular question – how does form come into being – has led me towards creating visual meditations on this mystery alone.

Because origin of form is addressed through an array of disciplines, as I seek information about physical realms, I look to historic and current sources in biology and geology.  For the conceptual domain, I explore mathematics and the cosmology, all the while capturing and organizing bits of abstract information on a grid – like segments of DNA interacting to unfold to recognition when the time is right. 

Perhaps the internal push-pull that is not necessarily revealed in my art forms, but without a doubt leads me through them, is that I find the whole notion of chaos fascinating and want to somehow make sense of it.  In the end though, the images in my work speak for themselves. I believe they allude to an underlying universal harmony that is as hopeful as is the circle.  After all, the circle is about democracy, unity and coming together.

Canvas | Paper | Mylar | Photography | Braille | Screen | Installation

Canvas
Because I believe quality line work to be an essential component of all two-dimensional art, it was inevitable that I should integrate the activity of drawing with that of painting.  Over time exploring various media and scrutinizing their effects individually and together, I find the trio of acrylic, chalk and oil pastels serve my creative pace, and allow me to accomplish the line work and effects desired.

My mixed-media canvas drawings are developed through repetition of layers – initiating a grid line or network, and responding with a series of curvilinear, meandering lines.  As these strata multiply, I am directed by my perpetual curiosity, and internal dichotomy, concerning how space is designed and manipulated.

On the one hand, I have a romantic vision of nature left alone to exist in its native state. And on the other, these idealistic notions are impinged by a reality in which man attempts to tame natural environments for his benefit, frequently surprised and unhappy with the outcome. Though I do not think of my canvas drawings as political statements necessarily – pitting the natural world against urban sprawl – I am often posing what if questions about the manipulation of space as I work, which leads to layers of symbols and visual representations of certain contrasting realities.

So often, I hear artists discuss standing at an impasse with the blank canvas, much like writer’s block.  In my experience, the ask-answer sequence guiding my work flows with little hesitation.  Elucidating my creative impulse to the point of resolution is the real challenge. Back to top

Paper
Drawing on paper is a time-honored tradition of noting by hand what the mind perceives through quick, gestural marks made on an extremely receptive substrate. My works on paper and canvas are inextricably connected, in that my thought processes at any given time will be worked out in an analogous manner, through different media.

I enjoy the process of drawing, erasing and rubbing and appreciate the effect this activity renders.  Impressions are captured quickly; therefore, an aspect of immediacy is attained.  Because the paper is infused primarily with pastel & charcoal, these works preserve a sense of light that communicates through the layers.  The media has taken hold of its space.

After time spent on other work, I often return to working on paper for a period to discern what, if anything, in my creative approach has changed as a result of a monumental undertaking.  At times, I have recognized subtle shifts, but often this is too nuanced to know how it may unfold.  This practice has reinforced my point of view that immersing fully in one’s creative process is to accept that some mystery lies just around the bend. I am fascinated by this unknown in my work, and willingly move toward it. Back to top

Mylar
Through my works on Mylar, I am exploring how form comes into being through my creative response to inspirational catalysts from the physical and conceptual realms, concurrently.  They are similar to, and an extension of, the grid-based systems in much of my work, but this vein of work reframes the environs more along the lines of organic fractals and nature’s number system, the Fibonacci series.

Here, my fascination with these organic and mathematic units leads me through iterations of graphite polylines on Mylar substrate.  Flowers were the initial inspiration for this work but as I continued examining various shapes and thinking of human nature, I altered the individual element such that instead of being circular, it morphed into variants as it repeated.  As I mused and analyzed various unit objects in this work, I realized that the variety of repetitive shapes seemed to be somewhat like people. 

People naturally strive for connection to community, and simultaneously long for distinction based on our unique qualities.  So, the individual component – a person, an organic fractal – is a cosmos in and of itself.  And when these units are composed – together and moving in rotation – we, like organic fractals, fashion complex universal systems. Back to top

Photography
Capturing a quick moment in time, I have used Polaroid photographs to document my travels for the past decade. The images are artistic vignettes of architecture, interiors, landscapes, and cityscapes - man-made but void of people. The small format, the finite material that makes each shot precious, and the subject matter are each an important contrast to the paintings on canvas and paper for I am better known.

While the large-scale paintings are elaborately mathematical and methodically planned, the unpredictability of these three-minute Polaroids is part of the process. The square format harkens to a bygone era of photography, yet the subject matter records modern society in all of its manifestations.

The completed image becomes a permanent record true to location, a tangible artifact documenting what existed at that moment. The total photographic process challenges me to glimpse life from unexpected angles and heightens my sense of immediate discovery.

This philosophical quality adds additional depth for to my artistic pursuits - I believes that the Polaroid camera is a collaborative partner - with its unpredictable self-development process and pastel-hued colors in that no matter what I see in the view-finder, the Polaroid ultimately wins. Back to top

Braille
Braille, as a cellular geometry and a system of exchanging ideas, bears a natural relationship with the grid. Within each are sets of connections, and absent these intersections, the bridge to spatial organization or thought association is altered – even interrupted. Through my Braille works, I am exploring the anthropologic quality of Braille, and considering metaphorical implications to human interaction.

Delving into the essence of the system, where everything is pared down to subtle dots on paper, I think of what it is like to possess perfect vision, yet the junction of one’s philosophies and ideologies creates impairment. When we can’t see beyond our own ideas, we accept them as sufficient. What if we were to shift, even slightly?  Might a glimmer recalibrate our optics, our perceptions?

The Braille work is bas-relief, and when light catches that little lip of the surface, it creates a shadow effect.  On a very basic level, it reminds me of early hieroglyphics.  This brings the original concept full circle – language as image. Back to top

Suspended Screen Structure
In much the same way as various philosophies shape our notions about the meaning of life, I use the grid as a way of looking at the world around us. The essential framework for architecture and spatial arrangement – the three-dimensional grid – has long been part of my thought process, as part and parcel of my interest in this area.  It is, therefore, integral to my explorations into how form comes into being.

Here, as the grid is freed from the two-dimensional plane, it forms a troupe of dynamic and responsive structural networks.  In motion independently, these circulinear lines create moiré patterns of connection and a fabric through which we move.

In my native Louisiana, the impressive barbe espagnole (Spanish moss) behaves in much the same way – hanging, flowing lines, constantly in motion, however subtle.  Activated by the invisible energies within an exhibition space – people moving about and air being manipulated by handling systems – these suspended screen structures respond as barbe espagnole in nature, rarely in full repose.

There is an openness to these suspended screen structures, but the interference of the grid overlays obscures slightly, much as a veil blocks the perfect view. This is an entirely appropriate allegory, I think, to the notion of sensitive dependence within chaos theory – where very small, simple systems can cause other, more complex events. Back to top

Installation
Every installation concept is site specific, just as any piece of architecture relates uniquely to the land where it is located. So relevant is the installation environment to viewer experience, that site characteristics are my primary focus.

Certainly, high ceilings and expansive wall planes are desirable spatial features for my work; however, keeping a mind open to other, unexpected attributes has proven valuable.  Ultimately, an ideal site is the vehicle that best amplifies the inspirational catalysts of all elements of the assemblage.  The cumulative effect then, is an intensified sensory experience for the viewer transforming them into participant.

Here, every aspect of manipulation and design of space comes into play for the participant’s benefit.  How a person enters and exits the exhibition space shapes their journey, and while aspects of an installation may suggest a particular course, a participant’s response is based upon their own, novel inclinations.

Because each installation is uniquely responsive to site location, I find the concept process to be ambiguous, mysterious, and exciting.  Once executed, the power of each installation unfolds through the synergies among arrangement of two and three-dimensional elements, positive and negative space, and the visible and invisible energies within the space. In balance, my installations may be thought of as active, dimensional reflections on the origin of form. Back to top