American Dream: Steps Toward Abstraction
This body of work began in 2020. The catalyst for it stems from a visceral feeling that the pillars of our democracy are at question. The values we all hold so true, the pursuit of happiness- it all- slipping away. I questioned the very things I thought were truths: the American Dream, Liberty, and Freedom. I wonder who has access to these values we all hold so dear and who feels these values just out of reach.
The series is broken down into 3 stages. Daydream, Fog, and Abstraction.
Daydream:
This collection of paintings are glimpses of moments we share: a picnic in the woods, sitting on the beach, watching the sunrise and set and in each of those moments letting all our hopes and dreams be suspended in time.
Fog:
Here you would see paintings beginning to blur the lines of abstraction as the viewer is encapsulated by a nebulous sense of wonder.
Abstraction:
The horizon line is something we all grasp toward in an attempt to place us in a space. The intention of concluding the exhibit with abstract art is to take away the sense of comfort that the horizon line provides. I do not want the viewer to feel grounded, instead, I want the viewer to leave the exhibit with a sense of wonder and hopefully self-reflection as to how they relate to the concepts addressed in the exhibit. My fear, and catalyst for these paintings, is that the American Dream is slipping away.
Artist Statement:
The American Dream Series is as much an homage to our country as it is intended to elicit questions from the viewer. This collection of paintings are glimpses of moments we share: a picnic in the woods, sitting on the beach, watching the sunrise and set and in each of those moments letting all our hopes and dreams be suspended in time.
The series began as covid swept the world. I watched our country become more polarized and with the soaring home prices I questioned the very things I thought were truths: the American Dream, Liberty, and Freedom. I wonder who has access to these values we all hold so dear and who feels these values just out of reach.
These paintings, both landscape and figure, are loose and gestural, at times they blur the line of abstraction. I work with the concept of memory in my studies, often beginning with a specific experience — either my own or inspired by a photograph. Memory is fluid; figures are intentionally kept loose and gestural. I play with paint. Like memory, it's sometimes lush and vibrant, sometimes thin and dripping away. Land and seascapes are broad and dreamy, stripped of specificity. Color, composition and mood dominate.
My goal is to create paintings that use the personal to access the universal, allowing viewers to drift into an emotive sense of time and space.
Process:
The foundation of each painting are hundreds of written words that come to me as I am painting. Words like “Freedom” "Truth" "American Dream" "Peace" “Question” and "Judgement" are covered as the painting progresses but remnants remain in the completed work. Sometimes I carve back into the painting and paint over the engraved word. My intention on painting over the written words and leaving parts of the words visible is to create a push and pull with the viewer; making them wonder what words may have been written beneath and how that may relate to the work on view. My ultimate goal is to encourage the viewer to question not only the work itself, but ultimately what the American Dream and Freedom are to them.