statement

Over the years, I have searched through many different creative mediums, trying to find the one allows me to express myself in a natural way. I've experienced film, dance, choral singing, and painting. It was through photography that I found my voice, my creative passion and the ideal medium to share my dream world with others.

My photos reflect a conceivable fantasy. By incorporating many real elements (people, costumes, and places) into my scenes and by placing models unlikely locations, I hope to create a conceptual dream world. Each scenario is possible, yet unlikely, and ultimately interesting.

My photographs depict stories of broken hearts, far away lands, love stories, solitude. I convey my emotions and imagination through the style of the photo (close ups and medium), the model (beautiful people who are cast to act in my dreams), the location (unlikely and yet real), and the colors. My photos usually end up dark and tinted, which gives the sense you're looking through a portal to see into my dream world.

I spend several hours with my models planning, choosing costumes, shoes, jewelry, props, locations, and the motivation for their character. The shots themselves happen organically while we are on location, merging preconceived ideas with happy mistakes. The best ones are usually those that I take when the model doesn't know I am photographing them.

I want each image to be its own unique experience so that viewers form their own ideas about what is occurring in the photograph. It is my hope that they would be intrigued and want to know more.

In the "real world" I work full time as the Archivist for the Massillon Museum. In my spare time, I enjoy performing with the improv comedy troupe, Scared Scriptless and performing with the choral organization, Voices of Canton (VOCI).

bio

born: 1983, Akron, Ohio

education

Kent State University, BA History with honors, 2005

selected awards/honors

Anthology Art Award, cover of book Modern Grimmoire (Indigo Ink Press, 2013)
First Place in Commercial Photography in the 2011 Joseph Saxton Gallery Luminaries Competition, Canton, Ohio

selected publications

Modern Grimmoire, Indigo Ink Press, Cover of the book, 2013
52 Weeks 52 Works, AGC, Cleveland, Ohio, week 37, 2012

selected solo or two-person exhibits

Translations Art Gallery, A Long Time Ago, Canton, Ohio 2014

selected group shows

Translations Art Gallery, Blind Date III, Canton, Ohio, 2013
Funhouse Gallery, Poisoned Apples, Detroit, Michigan, 2012
Lockview, Off the Beaten Path, Akron, Ohio, 2012
Massillon Museum, Annual Stark County Artists Exhibition, Massillon, Ohio, 2010, 2011