statement

I have always drawn from my life. That is to say, I have found that no matter how pedestrian or mundane the main thrust of my daily routine, it is there within my rituals, thoughts, and dreams that I find the finest fodder for imagery. As fate would have it, I recently and quite unexpectedly became a new father. If there is any overarching theme to my recent work, it is the that of an honest exploration of my personal feelings toward fatherhood. The operative word here is honest. It is easy to fall into a pit of sentimentality when dealing with images of children (especially your own). However, my intent is not to exalt the image of the patriarch or his progeny. There are already far to many sentimental, Hallmark images in the world without my adding to them.  While I must admit that there is an element of sentimentality to the nature between a parent and child, the truer nature of the relationship is infinitely more complex. Words often fall short of the mark when one attempts to verbalize this relationship. It is a relationship of affection and pride, yes, but also it is a relationship of complex fears, jealousy and control. Though language offers to tie these complexities to a single four-letter word (love), the truth is that the connection between a parent and child is not one so easily bound. It does not fit nicely into any structure of reason, but rather, it take place somewhere past the boundaries of the conscious mind and resides within the instinctual programming of the animal.

bio

born:1978, Grand Rapids, Michigan

education:

Kendall College of Art & Design, BFA, 2003

selected solo or two-person exhibits

Newaygo County Council For The Arts: Fatherhood, Newaygo, MI. 2009

selected group shows

80th Annual Muskegon Regional Art Exhibition: Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI., 2009
Spring For The Arts: Grandville Studios, Grand Rapids, MI. 2009
Spring For The Arts: Grandville Studios, Grand Rapids, MI. 2008