ARTIST STATEMENT

As I ran across eight lanes of traffic in a southern college town, I had no idea of how big of an adventure was beginning. I was only interested in getting across to where this spectacular colorful mural was so I could finally have a chance to make some interesting photographs. I had been going regularly to this town for well over a year for medical therapy and in my free time I have been unsuccessfully looking for something, anything of interest to photograph. Finally, I noticed this wall and I couldn't wait to get over there. Murals about rockstars, upcoming events, athletic events, charity fundraisers, and fraternity/sorority galas, filled the walls. Every color and color combination you could imagine was there ready to be noticed and for me to photograph. Surprisingly, I found the most fascinating things were the drips on the sidewalk of layers and layers of colors and splatters creating interesting kaleidoscopes that turned into incredibly interesting images. Over the weeks that I returned, I found myself spending more and more time photographing the sidewalk. It was only when I had exhausted all the possibilities by walking down to the far end of the wall that I noticed a decent-sized piece of the painting had peeled off of the wall and was lying on the sidewalk, I had walked right past it without noticing. The first thing to pop into my mind was I bet that would look great if you got it framed. I picked it up and was even more convinced.

As I have perfected making my paintings, finding the right substrate to work with is a big part of the creative process. Discovering a new substrate to work with triggered a flood of new ideas and added a huge dimension to the fun of painting. It unlocked a whole new vein of creativity. I search out mural walls that have been repainted dozens and dozens of times, reaching a point of thickness where it can be recycled - recovered, peeled apart and mounted on wood panels to become a new starting point for my artwork. Deciding on whether to enhance or repaint, I study what is already there – the remnants of colors, textures and composition that still remain and ask “What does it want to be?”.