My work is an exploration of nature and the natural limitations of the physical world. Nature is a truly beautiful mechanism in motion every second of every day; similar to a clock, the ocean tumbles sea shells into fine sand or a river cuts a canyon through the desert. Nature never misplaces anything; a leaf falling from a tree will be guided by the wind to a resting place on the ground. No one will question its landing.
I want to push the boundaries of the natural limitations of the physical world. In ceramics, this means creation that crosses the natural boundaries of expectation, rendering the clay seemingly to behave in unexpected ways. Even though the clay will always be what it is. This translates to a need for a near-perfect execution. A compromised piece will be returned to the slop because imperfections damage the aesthetic and the functionality of the piece. Ceramics reacts to the natural world by existing in exactly the way I form it. As the river forms the canyon, so too do I form my pottery.
In watercolor, this endeavor translates to manipulation of water with pigment and how it flows onto and into the paper, the ebb and flow between myself and the observer. With watercolor, the nature is my content. I use the watercolor to depict nature, taking the subject out of its context and pushing it into the ebb and flow that is watercolor. Watercolor allows me to represent the natural world, rendered through the limitations of watercolor. It’s in these limits that the lack of control allows me to guide rather than control. Photography is an act of control through location and exposure, not through the intentional loss of control in watercolor.
A watercolor is an individual piece, but to me, photography is a series that exists in space and time. Photography is unique because it documents and captures what is, not allowing the level of manipulation that other mediums offer. I explore the natural boundaries of photography, taking macro photos, developing a tension between the size of the image and the format of the film.Every photo captures a moment. That particular moment has never happened before and will never happen again. The split second in time that needs capturing. The split second that allows for the most interesting moment, what happens both before and after. I like being on the edge of what is possible. Art allows me to do what you’re not supposed to do.
My art breaks the rules, and breaks the rules boldly. I understand the rules and the practice of art enough that I can break the rules with intent . Nature has its own rule set that governs the world around me, this is where I create. The edges of what is possible is what I strive for; It’s in the edges that I find beauty.