It’s not by chance that I have chosen the human figure, and particularly the portrait, as a subject. The human face is the most visually captivating thing a person can see, and we identify with the human body and face more than anything else. I’ve heard a story that when someone asked John Ford, while setting up a shoot in the desert, “What are we going to shoot out here in the middle of nowhere?” Ford replied, “I’m going to shoot the most interesting thing in the world: the human face.”

The physical process starts with the camera. A subject is chosen and asked to pose. The camera is set on a tripod and the subject is asked to pretend the camera is a mirror, and that they are ‘checking themselves out’. Several photos are taken and then transferred into the computer for digital modifications. The photos are then touched up and arranged in a composition. Then, using vector tools, they are traced into shapes of color. Once they have been ‘vectorized’, they are printed in grayscale. The printed piece is then projected onto canvas and the piece is traced loosely. The shapes are then filled in with acrylic paint thinned with water, and gouache markers. Lastly, gold leaf is applied.

I strive to make objects that are aesthetically pleasing. The use of photography, computer software, and projection give the work a contemporary feel, while thinned out acrylic and gouache keep with the tradition of paint on canvas. The flattened areas of vibrant color and larger than life portraits relate to the era of pop art, while still maintaining a relationship with the advancing technology of computer art. Exhibiting the use of, what I like to call, analog vector graphics, the pieces are assembled with a certain disregard for the realism of the original photographic portrait.

The end result is an aesthetic object that uses color and texture to entice the viewer’s eye. The conceptual ideas behind the work are for the observer to interpret on their own, or to not interpret at all. The idea is that the pieces are aesthetic and whether you like them or not, they have an immediate presence. They are not difficult to comprehend visually or conceptually.

It’s about how we see ourselves. What aesthetic ideal do we hold when we’re observing ourselves, or just people in general? How would we look to someone if we were to display all our vanities for the world to see? How does our reflection relate to us? When viewing ourselves, there are certain imperfections that we are more aware of than an outside viewer might be. Isn’t it like that when artists look at their own work?

As humans, we have a certain obsession with reflections, and with seeing ourselves. Look at the world around us. How many mirrors do you see when walking down the street, in a hotel, or in someone’s home. People are constantly sneaking a peek at how they look in their new jeans by catching their reflection in the shop windows. In our cars, we have a rear view mirror and two side mirrors, but for some reason we still find a necessity to have a vanity mirror, often on both the driver’s side and the passenger’s side. The thought of a ‘vanity mirror’ to begin with is a funny concept. We look at ourselves in the reflections of car and bus windows. When we’re on the train, we use the windows to look at ourselves and other people. We are obsessed with the way people look.

People are always considering their appearance. If I had a euro for the number of times the subjects I photographed said, ‘I’m not wearing the right clothes,’ or ‘I don’t have any make-up on; you should have warned me in advance’, I could already start considering my retirement. These same people, while posing, tell me that they don’t know how to pose, and that they never really look in the mirror. I find it hard to believe. I’m not incredibly vain or anything, but I find myself checking my reflection almost anytime I get a glimpse of it. If I go into a bathroom, and there’s no mirror, I notice. Doesn’t everyone?

So what are we looking at? What are we looking for? Maybe we’re checking for zits, blemishes, eye boogers, snot. Maybe we’re checking our hair, our outfit, looking to see if our noses still look so big, or so hooked or so small, or if our eyes still look too close together. Are we too fat? Too skinny? Maybe we’re looking for what’s beautiful about us, how wonderfully blue our eyes are, how nice our skin is, how perfect our teeth are. Whatever it is, the search seems endless, and constant. If we look at this endless search as a scientific observation of ourselves, then what is the control subject? Maybe it’s our peers, our parents, or the runway models, celebrities, sports stars or ancient Greek statues.

Whatever the situation, the general public seems to be convinced of an ideal beauty, and it seems as if that ideal may be controlled, or at least molded by the media. So it seems possible to be able to convince yourself of a generic ideal beauty. If so, then wouldn’t it also be possible to convince yourself that a particular aesthetic in art is ideal? Having studied art history, I can look at a painting by Lucian Freud or Francis Bacon and see the exquisite beauty that is there. Why is it that I can see it while someone who hasn’t studied art might be completely unable to connect with such work. Is it because I have studied the history behind the work and realize how incredible it is that these artists come to these decisions, or is it just that I have subconsciously told myself, ‘This is famous art, you are supposed to like this.’ The same way the media of our society has imposed its view of what the ideal human figure is, has the art world imposed its view of what the ideal beauty in art is? Which just makes me wonder how people actually view art, regardless of their artistic education.

When I look at works of art and design, I search for what falls into my aesthetic. Perhaps it’s a painting by Modigliani, or an advertisement on the street. Maybe it’s a web page or an image in a design magazine. Maybe it’s some graffiti, or a piece of clothing. But I’m a visual person who has trained my eyes to view things in this way. Everyone has a certain style and an idea of what they find visually appealing, regardless of whether they are actively conscious of it. When I paint, I am trying to display what I find to be the most beautiful, and if I’m lucky, that coincides with what the audience wants to see.

I find it natural to paint the human figure and the portrait. Why not? Not only do I relate to it, but so do other people. Don’t get me wrong, I have a great deal of appreciation for the abstract, and have seen and created several abstract pieces which hold great aesthetic value to me, but nothing like the feeling of seeing the human figure recreated by an artist. Not only abstract work, but to me the painted portrait is generally a stronger image than the photographic one. It is not just a two dimensional reproduction of a human, but it holds its own human quality in the paint, or the pencil, or the charcoal, or whatever utensil the creator has chosen.

In my paintings, I am investigating aesthetics, both personal and artistic aesthetics. What do we see when we look at ourselves in the mirror? What do we see when we look at a painting in a gallery or museum? What is beautiful to people? What is beautiful about people, physically, and in a gestural sense? In my work, I’m searching to represent my aesthetic vision. I paint portraits of people investigating their reflection in a mirror. The mirror, when the painting is viewed, is actually the viewer. This shows how society influences the way we look at ourselves. I believe this subject matter relates to people searching for an aesthetic perfection. My work is just that; an attempt to find aesthetic perfection in painting.

A New Spirit of Progress - World Culture Open Gallery, New York City 2007
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Camel Signature Tour 2007
Live Painting at 20 concerts across the United States
with Citizen Cope, Keller Williams, The Black Keys and Dinosaur Jr.
Proud Gallery (Camden), London England 2006
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Waxaddict Gallery, Chicago IL 2003 - 2006
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Parsons Art and Design Show, Paris France 2001 - 2005
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Gallery B.O.B., Paris France 2005
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
The Mirror Conspiracy, Paris France 2005
Exhibiting Artist - Solo Exhibition
Past … Present … Future… , Paris France 2004
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Waxaddict Gallery, Chicago IL 2004
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Group Show, Espace Commines, Paris France 2004
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition
Junior Fine Arts Show, Parsons Gallery, Paris France 2003
Exhibiting Artist - Group Exhibition

Art Interview 8th International Artist Competition: 3rd Place (Online Competition) 2007
Art For Progress: Honorable Mention (Online Competition) 2007
Drench Art Awards: Winner (Online Competition) 2006
Drench Art Awards: Runner Up (Gallery Competition) 2006
Parsons Paris Grant 2003 - 2005
Parsons Paris Work-Study Opportunity 2003 - 2005

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