Statement of Work

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My current body of work is born out of an act of destruction, starting with me cutting up and tearing apart a series of minimal, color-heavy paintings that were made several years ago. These paintings embodied a darkness, and with them tainted memories that bore the urgency to be remixed and replaced, rather than completely erased. A different arrangement set into motion as strips of oil-soaked canvas scattered on the floor like ashes. Disembodied, the paintings now lacerated had begun to accumulate a new language. The colors and forms acting on their own volition, reassembled themselves as if there was still life left to them.

I seek to further elaborate upon this visual language. Lugubrious yet comical, the work I produce currently writhes on the brink of a painterly language that embodies elements of both collage and traditional quilt making. I am influenced by the chaos and uncanniness that occurs in cartoons – a limitless reality without precaution or repercussion. I find logic in punchlines. Gags such as anvils dropping or pianos exploding inform my decision making when it comes to making a gesture.

I use a needle and thread to access a textillian approach towards painting. The stitch and the act of sewing allow me to experience painting in new ways that are both challenging and spiritually engaging. I have always been interested and determined to question the conventions of painting, rather than completely surrender to them. The relationship I have with my brush, to tiptoe around its purpose like a seemingly juvenile act of defiance. I find myself consistently at odds with this. I cannot just allow myself to paint these compositions. Choosing to hand-sew each piece is my way of negotiating this predicament, while simultaneously piling on layers to the conversation.