Acrylic on 60x36" canvas

Reflections in a parking lot.

There are some questions I am getting asked again and again, maybe my artist statement will help:

Traveling in a car is a daily routine for most people in America today. We are often caught between destinations. Much of our exposure to the surrounding landscape is from within an insulated vehicle. For those who are along for the ride, there is a detachment from the scene that is unique to the passenger side. In order to study this relationship, I have taken moments from this journey and turned them into a destination. These common scenes deserve another look. By photographing scenes as a passenger and reinterpreting them with acrylic paint on canvas, I echo the relationship between artist and viewer. The artist becomes the driver and the viewer becomes the passenger. Although my major inspiration comes from the subject itself, there are certain artists and movements that have influenced my interpretation, including Wayne Thiebaud, Edward Hopper, and the Impressionists, particularly Camille Pissarro. These artists emphasize color and light in the commonplace, and I do the same in my work. Through painting the perspective of a passenger in a car, the role of the viewer as an observer is emphasized, and the beauty of the light and color in the commonplace is revealed.

For a deeper discussion of influences, subject matter, and working process see my full paper: [link]