April 2006 Artist's Statement

April 2006 Artist's Statement

The world at present is home to congested cities, complex technological systems and an ever-changing, raucous human race. Ironically, despite our constant exposure to our people-filled environment, we find it difficult to form long-term, meaningful bonds with those that surround us. One is capable of feeling remote in a bustling urban setting.

These paintings reflect this sense of public isolation by clearing out noise and removing human residue from the surfaces of social places. They focus on mid-sized urban grocery stores, structures that simultaneously reject (through modernist architecture and high-speed interaction) and represent (through repeat clientele and mild civic involvement) the idea of community. Here they are simplified, stripped of their signage and flattened by their anonymity. Color has been dulled and perspective is off, leaving the images askew and disconnected from the external world. Within this factitious scene buildings are built up through layers of thick and thin paint, acquiring a density that signifies permanence---these structures inhabit a space void of the clamor of humanity and will continue to do so for ages. It is in this lengthy quiet that a very gentle terror arises.

Within these paintings I find peace and place to think. Having lived in metropolitan areas for almost two years now, I often feel outside of the clatter and hustle that characterizes any city. Consequently, it is sometimes necessary to retreat to an equally isolated space---a lakeshore, a parking lot, an uninhabited studio with muted paintings---to reflect. This work aims to mirror the sense of separateness sometimes present in public settings and allow the viewer a place to be willfully alone and think.