Paintings

In my current work I explore process and my fascination vvith human flesh by using the physical nature of paint as an equivalency for images and surfaces. I am fascinated vvith how nesh can have different quaitities. It can be brittle, rough, or smooth, it can form calluses and it can change color. Paint has these same quaUties. When I see peeling skin on my body, it reminds me of peeling paint and I find it hard to resist touching either surface . Ideas for images are generated by examining my nesh for cuts, wrinkles or boney protrusions or by looking at the detritus of the painting process found in my studio. Piles of unused paint, discarded utensils and nesh become elements of a landscape. I include images of teeth, horns, and beads as visual forms. I enjoy combining these images to invent surreal landscapes or intimate interior scenes. By inventing scenes, I am not tied to literal rendering and therefore have freedom to explore the painting process. I work intuitively placing specific colors, textures or images on the canvas. My choices are based on the needs of a painting and those choices either evolve to a finish or become buried by subsequent layers of paint. I often use a wet on wet technique, liberally applying a color into another wet color. I am trying to control chaos in this endeavor. The result is a painting that begins with an initial brush stroke and progresses to a finish based upon form, brush marks and coloration. Images and the physical nature of paint are equally important in my work. When I paint a reflection, the paint is smooth with elongated brushstrokes. When I paint an image of fatty flesh, the paint is thickly layered. The references in my paintings, however, are of equal or less importance than my intention of viewers understanding subjects in terms of the painting process