About My Art
My art simultaneously embraces the formal concepts of spatial integration and linear elegance. My paintings, drawings, and mixed media works explore the complexities of objective reality juxtaposed with the mysteries of divine simplicity, redemption, suffering, and prayer. They celebrate the beauty of this physical world and echo the mystery of the unseen and unknowable.
I have used my art as therapy, both for myself and for individuals afflicted with various mental disabilities.
The subjects and styles of my works have mirrored my change and growth as a person. As a young child and adolescent, I created simple works in pastels and tempera paints. During and after college, I created more complex, abstract works, mostly painting in oils or acrylics, often on very large canvases.
As a young working adult, I struggled with alcohol addiction and the pain of several major failed relationships. During this time I used my art to put food on the table by working as an art therapist at several mental health facilities. However, for a period of nearly 10 years I almost completely abandoned attempting to create new art for myself.
It was only after moving to Cape Cod and committing myself to sobriety that I could begin to create new artwork again. At first, I focused on creating smaller, lighter, sparser works, many of them watercolors.
When I entered into and completed a Christian ministry program, my work began to take on an explicitly spiritual focus.
This trend continued in the following years, right up to the present. A personal tragedy (my mother’s protracted bout with and her eventual death from cancer), the trauma of 9/11, and several decades of dealing with major medical issues — all of these contributed to my need to look beyond the purely physical world for hope and inspiration.
About the Materials I Use
Similar to the way the subject themes and styles of my art have evolved, so have the materials I use to create works. Most of my early work employed conventional art materials. Over time, I started to use different kinds of naturally occurring elements, such as feathers, shells, and flower petals.
Many of my most recent works represent my attempt to “make something out of nothing”, employing almost exclusively organic elements as well as bits and pieces of whatever is at hand (e.g., spare buttons, swatches of antique clothing, shards of broken glass, clippings from old newspapers, magazines, and postcards, and various family heirlooms). This direction was at least partially driven by financial necessity – I simply did not have the money to purchase conventional art materials.