STATEMENT OF WORK

My paintings seek to untangle how fictional narratives work in tandem with the construction of reality. Often, the research around my work occurs simultaneously with the painting process, with each informing the other. For the past several years, I have been building up the surface of my paintings using cheesecloth, sawdust, and glass beads, which are embedded directly into the gesso. This technique gives the subjects a physical presence; they can be sensed through their tactility. Additionally, it allows for a looseness when constructing the composition; I often sketch with the materials directly onto the wet gesso, which doesn't allow for complete control over the final form. The construction of my paintings is a direct response to the ideas I am thinking about—subjects are instantly recognizable but not rendered to the degree that they lose their spontaneity. The living and seemingly inanimate are inseparable, existing as integral parts of the landscape, architecture, and even the painting itself.