Works On Paper - Artist Statement

I always draw. As a kid drawing transported me to another place. It still does that. It is the way I reinvent my language and act upon impulsive energy. Drawing is a direct way for me to find the "point of departure", the place that directs my paintings' beginnings. The gradual emergence of forms is a very seductive process. I consider my drawings isolated fragments of my paintings.

When I begin a painting, I cut "characters" out of plywood which I then set into a layering of paint. By pulling the plywood from beneath the surface, shadows and craters of the original idea are revealed. This "field" contains layers of images, like the drawings, except now they seem to be set in rock.