Spiritual Landscapes

This new low relief and painted landscape series has been inspired by my love of plein air painting. As an art student, I spent a semester painting in the wilds of the Delaware Water Gap on the East Coast, and created landscapes of this rural area during the winter months. I was impressed by the experience of the land awakening from its dormant monochromatic season to embrace the subtle colors of the burgeoning springtime.

Now living on the West Coast in the San Francisco Bay Area, I imbued this new series with the elusive quality of light, passage of tides & fog, and gathered other meditations on the woods, waterfalls, and cosmic transparencies that make up many of the different geographical experiences I have painted and sketched over the years. This series is envisioned on a deeply spiritual level.

These pieces have bases that are comprised of reclaimed or found wood such as palettes, old book cases, and lumber mill cut offs. Each piece of wood has its own spirit and the imperfections, grain, and wood knots all make for compositional opportunities. Once I have the basic shapes cut out I rely solely on hand carving tools to add texture, depth and form across the surfaces. I then seal the bare wood with layers of gesso before applying the final painted stage. Additions of other found objects such as, wire, fasteners, and ephemera, are attached when they find their way to my workbench.