As long as I can remember I have had a passion for creating art in some form. As a child I recall building a replica of a city out of legos and fisher price toys which took up the entire bottom of the stairwell in the living room of my home in Abington, Pennsylvania. I also remember similar building projects such as a miniature golf course in the basement out of any scraps I could find from my father’s plumbing and heating business. I took to drawing quickly and worked with pencils on any type of paper I could find until college.
In 2008 I graduated with a BFA from Kutztown University where I practised working nearly photo-realistically in a variety of media such as charcoal, watercolor, acrylic and oil paints. My focus recently has been on acrylics and oils, but almost every piece begins with a drawing in pencil. Drawing is the most essential aspect in my work because it is the basic sketch that is the framework for the finished piece. I choose images that I find aesthetically pleasing but at the same time are overlooked by many people. The subjects I am interested in painting are landscapes and figures. The form and gesture of a human body intrigue me and inspire me to capture what I see on canvas. The locations I choose to depict in my work are most often places I have come across many times in my life. These places range from downtown Philadelphia to the rural setting I was surrounded by in college. At the same time, the figures I use in my paintings are also usually familiar to me, typically family or friends.
I aspire to create the illusion of a three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface. Through the application of thin layers of paint I craft smooth, glossy paintings which are aesthetically pleasing. The use of chiaroscuro in my work assists the illusion of space on the flat surface. High contrast artworks such as Caravaggio’s paintings have influenced my artwork greatly and I will continue to look to his works for inspiration. As I look back on my life of creating art I am certain this passion of mine will never fade and I will strive to create even more challenging and beautiful pieces in my future.