statement

Working from observation is what has always driven me to paint.  This process involves the artist's perception of sight and the translation of what is seen through marks on the surface. Combined with these marks and objects are ideas that are changing around me, which create my work.

Currently my work has been dealing with the ways people perceive nature and bring them into the indoors.  My work is rooted in the tradition of painting still life, interior spaces and landscape. I chose to represent these ideas in still life in order to have a verity of objects to represent the many views of landscape past and present.  I reference the snapshot, the way the landscape has been viewed in art history through painting, as well as the plants and products that enter our home. My choice of objects are representative of both the tradition of still life and the essence of landscape.

Painting my objects in strong lighting creates a dramatic setting for their stage.  Much like an installation, I arrange my objects in an environment on the floor of the studio, sometimes incorporating walls and windows placing my objects in a very dull grey setting. This grey atmosphere sets off the vivid colors of the photographs and gives me a setting to arrange my objects in.

This process of painting is deeply rooted in history; I often draw upon art history as a reference. While painting, I gradually begin to see what is actually in front of me, and translate that to an abstract mark on the surface, creating space, light, and color.  Ultimately it is my goal for the viewer to understand these objects better because they are painted and that they may view them through the painter's lens.

bio

born: 1984, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

education:

West Virginia University, MFA, 2010
Columbus College of Art and Design, BFA, 2006
SACI Studio Arts Center International, Summer, 2006

selected awards/honors

Excellence Award, West Virginia Juried Exhibition, Huntington Museum of Art, WV, 2010 Purchase Award, West Virginia State Museum Contemporary Art Collection, WV,  2009

selected solo or two-person exhibits

MFA Thesis Exhibition: Outside: Inside, Laura Mesaros Gallery, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, 2010

selected group shows

Chelsea International Fine Art Competition, Agora Gallery, New York, NY, 2010
23rd Annual September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA, 2010
Allied Artist of West Virginia Juried Exhibition, Clay Center, Charleston, WV, 2010
4th Annual Master Pieces, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH, 2010