WHY?
My recent work directly reflects my musings on the creatures we share this planet with. Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about evolution, and the pressure that we’re putting on species to adapt much more quickly than they’re capable of doing. This is the “Elephant in the Room”: something so desperately obvious, but nobody knows how to approach it.
The process of evolution is a system so ingenious that it capitalizes on ‘flaws’ in the genetic code, allowing species to change to better suit their environment, and fight for their survival. While a solution exists, it takes several million years.
In science, the big cool animals, the ones that end up on pamphlets, flyers, postcards, are referred to as “sexy” species. It’s easy to talk about their habitats getting pinched because people love these animals. However, our truth on this planet is usually indicated by much smaller things. Frogs, fish, and insects are often the first to show the effects of environmental disruption. In “Truth and Bugs,” the three species shown are all extinct: gone forever, whether by human hands or, interestingly, their own.
Life is not simple in the face of so many threats: habitat loss, parasites, disease, poaching, deforestation, invasive species, climate change. Despite this, I do not want to spin a story of doom and gloom. In the words of Oscar Wilde, “Life is too important to be taken seriously.”
So what am I asking of you as the viewer? Of myself? Of humans? I don’t know, but I do know that it’s a question that we will be forced to answer, a question we should prepare for.
HOW?
I create these works starting from a watercolor base that pulls out the grain of the wood and adds a subtle tone to the work. The acrylic and oil paint is layered over the watercolor base as a richer and deeper color, allowing the main image to pop off the wood. The texture of the wood shows through on my works, which adds a level of depth and provides a durable canvas. Instead of ignoring the ‘canvas’ I’m painting on, I try to highlight the importance of material and construction. The prevalence of the triangle is influenced by a pretty neat rug in my bedroom. The triangle also symbolizes change, however, an omnipresent theme in my work. I’m as influenced by artists and movements as I am by scientists and their discoveries. While science can explain why wings form in three different ways, it fails to explain art. Some questions are best left unanswered.
My recent work directly reflects my musings on the creatures we share this planet with. Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about evolution, and the pressure that we’re putting on species to adapt much more quickly than they’re capable of doing. This is the “Elephant in the Room”: something so desperately obvious, but nobody knows how to approach it.
The process of evolution is a system so ingenious that it capitalizes on ‘flaws’ in the genetic code, allowing species to change to better suit their environment, and fight for their survival. While a solution exists, it takes several million years.
In science, the big cool animals, the ones that end up on pamphlets, flyers, postcards, are referred to as “sexy” species. It’s easy to talk about their habitats getting pinched because people love these animals. However, our truth on this planet is usually indicated by much smaller things. Frogs, fish, and insects are often the first to show the effects of environmental disruption. In “Truth and Bugs,” the three species shown are all extinct: gone forever, whether by human hands or, interestingly, their own.
Life is not simple in the face of so many threats: habitat loss, parasites, disease, poaching, deforestation, invasive species, climate change. Despite this, I do not want to spin a story of doom and gloom. In the words of Oscar Wilde, “Life is too important to be taken seriously.”
So what am I asking of you as the viewer? Of myself? Of humans? I don’t know, but I do know that it’s a question that we will be forced to answer, a question we should prepare for.
HOW?
I create these works starting from a watercolor base that pulls out the grain of the wood and adds a subtle tone to the work. The acrylic and oil paint is layered over the watercolor base as a richer and deeper color, allowing the main image to pop off the wood. The texture of the wood shows through on my works, which adds a level of depth and provides a durable canvas. Instead of ignoring the ‘canvas’ I’m painting on, I try to highlight the importance of material and construction. The prevalence of the triangle is influenced by a pretty neat rug in my bedroom. The triangle also symbolizes change, however, an omnipresent theme in my work. I’m as influenced by artists and movements as I am by scientists and their discoveries. While science can explain why wings form in three different ways, it fails to explain art. Some questions are best left unanswered.