I am a figurative artist working in painting and drawing. My work is intended to validate my place in this world. I am not seeking the validation of others but rather the validation of myself. I create to bring others into the intimate parts of my life to hopefully have them let me into theirs. I primarily use oil paint in my paintings because of the feeling; it’s thick and there is a quality of fullness that acrylic paint lacks. I also use pencil to create drawings due to the quiet yet expressive quality. Grey inherently has an intimate mood associated with it and my drawings are meant to be a break, a resting place to process. With my work, I intend to create celebratory artworks that highlight the individuality of people while simultaneously mining myself to find the qualities of myself that I find in others.
My work in an internal investigation. I have a longing to belong. This is a belonging that I do not yet know the words or images for, but I can see in others. I have a fascination with humans and find people amazing. I want to celebrate the individuality of those around me. I have two threads in this body of work that communicate but are separate. I paint others, particularly those who give me the privilege of becoming a person in their lives. I want to celebrate the things that make them who they are and present their humanity to an audience. The second thread relates back to the first in my desire to be included in the celebration of individuality. I am searching for personal validation that I am needed and that I am my own person.
While I primarily use oil paint and pencil in my work, I do not limit my work to these mediums and will use whatever material is necessary to convey the message I need. Within my celebratory paintings I have been using oil paint due to its ability to recreate what I am seeing and represent people in an approachable manner to most viewers. I also have been making pencil drawings that have a more quiet, intimate feeling to them. Both of my primary materials are intentionally used in reference to the long-standing historical presence in the Western Art Canon and portraiture. Portraits have long been considered one of the foundations of “high art” and historically reserved for the aristocracy and royalty. I seek to make portraiture available for all and establish value in the rest of society.
I am attempting to find value within myself through the exploration of my individuality. Finding parts of myself and my identity establish the value and worth within the eyes of my harshest critic: myself. The pressure I place on myself stems from my own confusion within my cultural heritage as an American mutt with nothing but whispers of culture long forgotten along with my very existence as a straight, white male in the art world. Similarly, I have long felt like player number two in my own life. My self-portraits are extremely referential, with myself being the subject of most of my paintings and drawings. My opinion and value are monumental factors in my practice and could not exist without the motivation to find that value in myself that I see in others.
I want my work to make people feel unique and valued. I believe in people and have an innate fascination with the things that make people unique. In depicting the people within my life, I hope to find and explore the value that I bring to the world and establish my worth to myself. Through these processes I am hoping to find something.
My work in an internal investigation. I have a longing to belong. This is a belonging that I do not yet know the words or images for, but I can see in others. I have a fascination with humans and find people amazing. I want to celebrate the individuality of those around me. I have two threads in this body of work that communicate but are separate. I paint others, particularly those who give me the privilege of becoming a person in their lives. I want to celebrate the things that make them who they are and present their humanity to an audience. The second thread relates back to the first in my desire to be included in the celebration of individuality. I am searching for personal validation that I am needed and that I am my own person.
While I primarily use oil paint and pencil in my work, I do not limit my work to these mediums and will use whatever material is necessary to convey the message I need. Within my celebratory paintings I have been using oil paint due to its ability to recreate what I am seeing and represent people in an approachable manner to most viewers. I also have been making pencil drawings that have a more quiet, intimate feeling to them. Both of my primary materials are intentionally used in reference to the long-standing historical presence in the Western Art Canon and portraiture. Portraits have long been considered one of the foundations of “high art” and historically reserved for the aristocracy and royalty. I seek to make portraiture available for all and establish value in the rest of society.
I am attempting to find value within myself through the exploration of my individuality. Finding parts of myself and my identity establish the value and worth within the eyes of my harshest critic: myself. The pressure I place on myself stems from my own confusion within my cultural heritage as an American mutt with nothing but whispers of culture long forgotten along with my very existence as a straight, white male in the art world. Similarly, I have long felt like player number two in my own life. My self-portraits are extremely referential, with myself being the subject of most of my paintings and drawings. My opinion and value are monumental factors in my practice and could not exist without the motivation to find that value in myself that I see in others.
I want my work to make people feel unique and valued. I believe in people and have an innate fascination with the things that make people unique. In depicting the people within my life, I hope to find and explore the value that I bring to the world and establish my worth to myself. Through these processes I am hoping to find something.