Artist Statement
I am an multi-talented creative, a polymath of sorts in the arts, with proficiency as a visual artist, jeweler, poet/writer, and performer, along with some other interests. My background additionally reflects experience as an educator, an advocate for youth empowerment, and an entrepreneur.
My art has always held a clean and linear graphic quality, typically consisting of black-and-white line-based drawings. Long and continuous lines, streams of conscious and zen on paper and sparse, choppy tally marks paired in bunches. This style served as the base for both abstract, non-figurative as well as fully realized figurative and portrait drawings.
As I’ve transitioned through various artistic and creative means of expression, I have also evolved and expounded on my visual art exploration, where I have reclaimed my passion for music and performance and paired it seamlessly into my latest paintings, which still incorporate line as the main element. The quality of lines vary, as each type of marking denotes a specific musical instrument or sound and its movement, uniquely interpreting music onto canvas or paper. Drawing sound. I’ve developed a system and unique musical notation incorporating layers of colors, text, line and what can be read or looked at as an urban or street art version of chart or sheet music.
My creative process begins by selecting a song that I have a connection with emotionally or association with from memories throughout my life, past and current. The song is played on repeat for several minutes, sometimes hours if necessary, as this begins the study of the song, its parts, vocals and instruments. I isolate each component of the song, piece by piece, translating its sound, movement and rhythm through the use of the symbols and marks I’ve developed, creating a painting or drawing that radiates music to the eye, sparking the imagination of the viewer to imagine the unfamiliar or recall the song from memories and experiences of their own.
Each painting stands as a visual representation of the audio recording and song itself with emotion, bounce and vibration.