The figure is the embodiment of the human experience. It is the site of courage, joy, and love, of compassion, fear, and pain, of struggle, loneliness, and frustration, or sorrow, of loss. As a narrative, figurative painter, I use the figure to depict these universal emotions.
The images in my paintings are twice removed from reality. In their transfer from the tonal and spatial qualities of the photograph to the textural, gestural, and light qualities of the canvas, the figures acquire a new life. Spatial relationships are altered; details prominent in the photograph become irrelevant. The once poised and fixed portrayal is re-created as a natural and fluid image.
However, a component of the photographic nature of the image remains: in the stance of a figure, its engagement with the camera, a certain poised consciousness of being observed. This subtle quality provides a compelling backdrop and removes the facades for the viewer.
The family environment is the primary focus. The synthesis of the photographic and the painted image, within the familiar context of the family, invites viewers to explore their emotions and transcend worldly barriers: perhaps recalling a moment from parent- or childhood, perhaps renewing a quest to understand the meaning of our existence.
