In this new body of work I continue to explore subjects that intrigue me such as the sea, sea life, and the female form. Through haunting visuals, I strive to express the subtle beauty of figurative realism as if it is encapsulated in the undulating waves of the extraordinary.
‘The Sea is Calling’ is a reference to leaving home, abandoning your comfort zone, being drawn to that which is unavoidable. I've left behind a process I've been accustomed to in order to hone my craft in a new fashion. This show is not only about the imagery, but also the process. In giving up the finely detailed layout drawings under my paintings, I've turned toward the 19th century masters’ approach. Painting with a free hand, studying from life and working from charcoal renderings has enabled me to say more with less and achieve a figurative realism through simplicity. The paintings are rendered completely in oil with no skeleton or architecture underneath. It has released a freedom within and allowed me to tell my stories with reckless brushstrokes. I've minimized my palette to create a desaturated, mood-driven body of work.
Spending my lifetime at the shore, the sea is an indelible subject in my work. Through figurative realism and unconventional seashore imagery, I reveal the ocean and all of its mysteries through deep narratives that connect to a darker notion of what the sea represents. Whether tangled in fishnets, (Flotsam and Jetsam), succumbed by octopi (Sinking), or illuminated by light firing from driftwood (Nest), there is a peculiarity to discover this oceanside world that is too often left unmapped. But perhaps it is my vision for Never Sink, the beauty of the unknown in full statuesque grandeur, which continues to call me back to the sea.