About the Artist
About the Artist
Art has always been a savior throughout my existence whether studying, experiencing or creating it. Only within these rare, fleeting moments do I encounter genuine freedom and have full comprehension of what it means to be alive; an acute awareness far beyond the limitations of words.
The subject matter that interests me resides primarily in the ordinariness of daily existence and the misleadingly banal reality it represents; one comprised of severe, subtle and bizarre beauty that inadvertently reflects the hope, despair and pragmatism of humankind. Such preoccupation arose amongst the innumerable industrial wastelands of my Midwestern American youth, which remain my foremost artistic and humanistic influences. The decay, barrenness and harshness of these areas, and the hardships suffered therein, manifests itself in every picture I have created and ever will.
Other influences include Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity), a movement prominent in Weimar Germany that highlighted the tediousness of everyday existence and those who lived it, ultimately disintegrating society’s façade into subtly subversive and insightful art. The bold colors, forms, intensity and inventiveness of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, the German Expressionist filmmakers, Jean-Luc Godard, Wong Kar Wai, the cinematography of Christopher Doyle and the startling originality, resourcefulness and unparalleled audacity of Edward D. Wood Jr. also influenced me, as did the bold and subtle forms, colors and elegant simplicity of pre-modern Chinese, Japanese and Zen Buddhist art. The silver and bronze age Marvel Comics of my youth remain a significant influence as well.
I ultimately strive to present a challenging and diverse view of society so that it may inspire others to perceive it differently and perhaps achieve greater appreciation and understanding of the world in which we live.