All images are 22” x 20” acrylic on canvas
In this series, “Ensemble,” I was exploring not so much an overall narrative or a unifying theme, but how each color in a composition, each painting in a series, has its own meaning — with, but also without, the context around it. Not unlike a cast of actors that comes together to tell a story, the story is only possible because of the unique individuals that gather to tell it. For me, the magic, in terms of meaning, really happens once the viewer engages with the work and brings the finished work into their own story.
I read a quote recently by the artist Damien Hirst, where he was trying to figure out why he was drawn to painting a particular shape, trying to determine what connections and meanings this shape had to the larger world. Ultimately, he decided that yes, he loved painting this shape for all of the metaphorical connections, but also just because the act of painting them was satisfying.
It made me think that it’s true, artists have a full spectrum of metaphors and meanings to go with everything they put on the canvas. But with abstract painting, it’s not a literal expression. It’s more about what ideas, emotions and impulses guide you in the act of painting itself — how much you let in and move through you as you paint. Knowing at the end you might stand back and say all those things matter, but at the same time, I just like the way these colors and shapes speak to me.
All pieces in this series are sold.