Falling Sunflower - Limited Edition 1 of 6 Print

When I make a work of art I like to think about the relationships of colors, lines and shapes as they lay alongside one another. For me, it is also about the relationships we have alongside our place in the natural world. Most of my work is inspired by nature, by actual objects or vistas and then rearranged and re-envisioned as I create a piece of work. I like to look carefully at my surroundings. When I start to paint, I look carefully at how one layer falls onto another or is placed beside it. As an abstract painter I use the natural world as a reference for my work. Specifically, landscapes and their complexities of pattern, color and texture, inform what I paint. This pursuit has led me from the urban landscapes of New York to the Catskill Mountains where many of my recent works have drawn their inspiration. The Catskills offer a particular context of shaded slopes, tilted rocks, rambling streams and tangled undergrowth. The seasonal changes allow me to revisit panoramas with a new lens. Occasionally I have had the opportunity to source from a different context which both broadens and informs my work as a painter. When I see the sharp horizon, the layers of blue on blue on grey of the water, the muted tidal flats and the green of the coastal vegetation, I feel an undeniable excitement that is the essence of my visual practice.