CROSSING THE BORDER OF ALMOST
CREATIVE PROCESS
I try to allow a painting to evolve as it will. Recently I have begun to use poetry to help me uncover the central truth I hope to convey visually. Once the poem is done, it becomes easier to trust that my intention will reveal itself as I paint spontaneously. Mostly I play, applying many layers of oil paints mixed with cold wax. Sometimes I add thin Asian papers as collage elements. I work quickly, and embellish with scribbles and splatters of paint. I scratch into the layers to reveal bits of the painting's history. Dramatic color and rich texture help me to convey complexity and emotion. Blurred areas make shapes appear to recede or emerge, and borders seem transitory. Diagonal lines create rhythm and internal energy. Other lines look like text (Asemic writing) and suggest a universal language. All of these design elements help me to express what's on my mind.
Change is a powerful force in today's world. The sense of motion and energy in my work attempts to capture this, regardless of the painting's subject. Again and again we are asked to integrate new information and new technologies into our daily lives. A continual state of flux is our "new normal." Through my art, I want to capture an order which may dissolve into chaos, and a chaos which contains the beginning of order.