Hands On Works

Works from Popped Art 2 were ideas that I wanted to explore that I never got to do in my first show as well as new ideas. I wanted to dive into things that I have never done and make images that are a break from the idea of a "classical painting". Works like the Joan Crawford made of wire hangers, Tine Turner made from broken records, to Michael Jackson made of cassette tape.

Every show, I try to build on things I’ve done and take my work to a new place where I have not been, while building on things that I didn’t take far enough. Shows often resonate where I am in my life as well, and I wanted it to be a play on words. I have been thinking a lot about social issues of health and wellness and how depression’s highs and lows affect so many – how our mental states are so layered, multidimensional, and complex.

Dips of Depression also speaks to the amount of texture and depth of where I’m trying to take my works: pushing the definition of painting blurred with sculpture. The majority of the new works are really textured; they have a lot of depth and I have experimented with some new materials - some as simple as thread - that have really have been pushing my ideas in new, exciting ways.

We all could give a diary confession of how our mental state is how complex and intricate - and what you don’t see is just under the layer of things we show to people every day in our social persona. Yet, we don’t really tend to sympathize with people that may have those problems; there is a social stigma associated with something that is as common as having a bad day.

Popped Art is a collection of works that I wanted to create as an appreciation of a style I have never really explored.  I wanted to pay homage to artists like Andy Warhol as well as iconic popular culture that have influenced my life.  This was the first show where half of my works were collage works as opposed to mainly paintings. I explored many new materials I have never used in just a "2D Painting" format.  For instance, with "Its Not Right, But Its Alright",  I used only an audio cassette tape and a blank canvas to portray Whitney Houston.  I had almost given up on the idea of being able to make something after twenty minutes of working with what is a very non-pliable material.  After exploring the idea of how to use and break down the tape I went forward with the idea, creating one of the most popular pieces of the show. 

The idea for this show was comprised of making works that I could reuse or repurpose from leftovers of tables or parts of various table tops to create the art. I used actual tables, legs, hardware or scraps from deconstruction of the materials. The color is oil paint, dyes, and/or ink.

This show came from a desire to return to creating figurative works. In my early works as an aspiring artist, I felt compelled by the human figure. I was more comfortable rendering it in more of an abstract form, and for this show, I wanted to push my comfort zone and make more realistic works than I had every previously tried.

A variety of large works all 80 inches in length.  Works are primarily oil and mixed media on wood panel. 

Hung