In Tangled Times

 

First, there is nature. The noise of being human makes it difficult to maintain focus on the fundamental reality that we are all, simply and inseparably, part of the natural world. The paintings in this body of work are an attempt to realign our antennae, rejoining the shared understanding offered to us when we remember how to see and communicate in concert with the other beings of our ecosystem.

 

Observing movement, transition, and change in the natural world is the nexus for these paintings. As the beautiful becomes profane, it becomes crucial to create from necessity. Light and life inform through structures we cannot see by mere forward viewing; trees evolve unique shape by following resources, their roots a testament to the twisting and patience required to survive. Through movement and change, loss becomes a new opportunity to reach outward, shaping history from the collective experience of adaptation and re-creation.

 

Working on top of decommissioned paintings and starting from an intuitive core, the pieces prioritize connection in the present moment, each layer revealing a path traveled to a singular and contingent conclusion. Seeking to bypass the rational brain, the work –- much as life itself -- is an exercise in trusting that the brush hand will know what to do; that when we’ve made a mess of it, we may still find a way through in these tangled times.