“Looking at the Overlooked”
Overall my work investigates the residue of the human lifestyle. The simple still life interiors, which I depict, show traces of everyday life that references the absent individual(s). Their presence is solely depicted symbolically by objects. This is a common thread that has been woven through most of my work. With the suggestion of the absent individual(s), through objects, I create figurative work without using human subjects.
The objects, which I choose to depict, are mundane ordinary commodities that are often overlooked. By isolating them and making them the subject of my work, I elevate the mundane, attaching with it new contemplative ideas. These objects are often disregarded and no longer serve any function. They are presented empty, meaningless, and used. When I elevate these subjects into the art realm and isolate from their function, they raise questions of history, identity, mortality and absence. The objects themselves are the sole visual focus of my work, though it is the traces of the absent individual that are intriguing. Often the viewer will fill in a narrative with personal memories and associations. Though it is the absent individual who plays a vital role in each piece.
My work focuses on the emotions that surround individuals who are no longer present in our lives. By taking everyday objects and presenting them in the art world I symbolically initiate many questions. The paintings allow them to contemplate, but never grant the full truth or the reasons behind the situations presented.
The absent figure that is portrayed in each piece stands in as a universal for everyone. People move in and out of our lives. Some of those people we hold closer to us then others. Some of those people we lose. This is a common experience that everyone has to deal with. It is this experience that drives my practice.