Painter | Sculpture | Mixed Media
I am a fine art painter, sculpture and mixed media artist based in Prescott, Arizona.
Recent Work
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Through paintings I translate the landscape and deep space into scenes that explore new territory. Discoveries in the subject matter, creative process and how they are presented are created on canvas, paper or wood. I have always been fascinated by science, art and technology; my first career was as a chemist and then on to biotechnology. I believe it’s important to continually cultivate my sense of wonder and to educate myself on the world we live in, including the spaces currently beyond our reach. Each painting is an experiment, either in the materials, subject, application process or the presentation.
I like to call my approach expressive experimentation.
An ongoing series is based on images from the Hubble space telescope. Through these cosmic paintings you’ll visually experience the thought provoking nebulae, galaxies, dark matter, stars and planet systems of our universe. I’m creating new abstracts with interesting textures of hand-made papers, metal leaf and other mixed media, giving them greater depth and luminescence. The complex surfaces have considerable tactile qualities and create a greater illusion of color depth than most other paint applications.
Exploration in sculpture mostly involves animals. These are made from paper, metal, stone, wood, glass and fiber clay. Fiber clay does not require firing in a kiln so they are either painted realistically with acrylic paint or given an all over bronze look. I call those ‘the more affordable bronze’. The fireballs are made of paper, plaster and copper. The bronze, iron and brass paints have been given a natural patina. These hot meteorite fragments glow!
ABOUT THE PAINTING AND SCULPTING PROCESS
Working from a combination of plein air, memory and multiple reference photos, I create an image that captures the attributes that initially caught my attention. Using a brush, palette knife, sponge, rag, fingers, sticks and other tools, I apply acrylic mediums, paint, glass, semi-precious metals and stones, papers and other archival materials to wood, paper or stretched canvas. Paintings are created in a variety of sizes and I mostly use acrylic paints when mixing media. However, for many representational works I use oil paint.
The sculpture process begins with a study of the skeleton and muscle structure before building an armature which may include wood, metal rods and wire. I make the eyes with glass and when the materials are dry, I finish it with paint. For my animals, it is all about the face and the expression seen in the eyes. They do not require food or water and sit quietly on your table or shelf.
ARTISTIC JOURNEY AND DEVELOPMENT
“When life gives you lemons…paint them!”
