ARTIST'S STATEMENT

My paintings are composed of dreamy expansions depicting outer space. They are rich utopian versions of our solar system and beyond; events of ever moving cosmic parts; stars that expand and collapse; and on occasion, distorted planets in the shape of a rugby balls (which is a real thing according to the McDonald Observatory in Texas). I follow the phases of the moon, when planets line up, and when asteroids fly close to earth. I’m obsessed with space events because they enhance my imagination and act as an escape. In addition, I often add an element from my  everyday life living in the Hudson Valley. For example, I incorporate the branches of the Ash tree that is being decimated by the invasive Emerald borer here in the Northeast. In homage to the tree a symbol of a branch floats in space. I place the viewer among the stars in a cosmic soup, as I eliminate the horizon line. I want to share my ‘taking flight’ with the viewer by looking back at our planet as well as looking ahead into our distant past. I work in oil on canvas and use palette knives to create a hyper rich Van Gogh like texture of deep color.