About My Art

The Narrative Heart

"For me, landscapes, still life, and abstracts are props—the scenery for a much larger story. Every time I finish a 'standard' landscape, I feel as though I’ve passed a technical test. But when I finish a narrative piece? That’s when I buy the frame. That’s when the work truly lives."

For over 30 years, I’ve navigated various genres, but I always return to the human dynamic. Dynamic; both in terms of visual elements, and emotional tension. Nothing fills the creative cup for me like a well-told story. About 2015, I decided that I was going to stop trying to achieve undefined ideas and simply paint in an illustrative manner about anything that crossed my mind. There was a five-year period where I focused exclusively on humor and figure paintings in watercolor, gouache, and my beloved casein. Those fast-moving, water-based mediums forced me to be decisive, refining the efficient, illustrative oil style I use today. Those years greatly increased my drawing skills and abilities.

Even a single portrait, if it is telling, can be enough. But it must say something.

At 63, I have no interest in spending my remaining years playing it 'safe' or conforming to genres that don't move me. I paint 'moments'—scenes captured in the middle of a narrative that I hope are as entertaining to the viewer as they were for me to direct. I am not interested in technical perfection for its own sake; I am interested in the soul of the interaction. The years I spent on the illustrative humor and figure paintings were integral in becoming efficient and using every artist tool. I embrace modern tech and find inspiration from many sources, and enjoy developing a good reference.