Process

I started drawing when I was about four years old and have never really stopped. I drew in the margins of notebooks and school reports and it was always of people. That's how I learned that I'm essentially a figurative painter. Over time the figures evolved. I became interested in human gesture and expression and its power to communicate. Much later, as I learned about painting, I became interested in how color can evoke emotion. These days, I paint whatever moves me, but I keep returning to the figure.

The starting point of my imagery may be a photo or a drawing from my sketchbook. Frequently I begin by scribbling and playing with the drawing materials, censoring nothing. Inevitably a figure or a scene occurs (within the scribbling) which I find stirring. From this I develop my composition.

I was trained in traditional western methods of painting and drawing. Today, I enjoy experimenting with different mediums. This has included watercolor, acrylic and various methods of printmaking. I use whatever technique I feel will best express the intent of the image. My work has elements of surrealism and magical realism. It is both figurative and narrative. I sometimes use motifs from world mythologies. My influences are many, including romanticism and expressionism. I am especially fond of the French symbolist painters of the nineteenth century.