I am a largely self-taught abstract painter and sculptor.   My paintings are inspired by the early abstract expressionist artists who achieved notoriety in New York City in the 1960’s, while my sculptures are influenced by both American sculptors as well as several of the exquisite Spanish metal sculptors.   

For my paintings, I employ acrylic paints and mediums applied to wood panels using brushes, palette knives or even my fingers.   Oftentimes, I will add other materials such as papers, gold leaf, sand or even metal to my paintings to achieve a desired effect.   When I start a painting, I will often have a vision in mind of what I am hoping to produce yet, more often than not, the end product will look vastly different from my original vision.  While this process bothered me greatly when I first started painting, I have now surrendered to the phenomenon by just letting the paints and other materials take me where they want to go – I need only remind myself to sit back and enjoy the ride.  Sometimes the ride will produce a colorful painting and sometimes it will produce something textural and sometimes a combination of the two.     

As the artist who has the privilege of applying the paints, mediums and other materials, I strive to create a piece that provokes curiosity and intrigue in the mind of the viewer.  My goal is to produce a painting that causes the viewer to ask questions like “how did he do that”, “what is underneath that layer”, or “did he put the red on before the blue or vice versa”?  For me, that is what abstract art is all about.  When painting, I am not trying to abstract some figurative object or scene; instead, I prefer to let my paintings speak to the viewer in private hoping only that I have sparked a positive reaction in the mind of the viewer.   

For my sculptures, I use hot rolled steel – and occasionally aluminum – which I will often pair with some natural material such as beach rocks or driftwood.   For me, there is something magical about combining a manmade material like steel or aluminum with natural materials like beach stones and driftwood.   By combining these different materials, I strive to produce a piece that creates a juxtaposition for the viewer to indulge whether it be between the metal that has been shaped into an elegant form or between the metal that has been coupled with a natural material like stone or wood.  Achievement of my goal is sought by introducing various Asian and Zen design styles and themes into the composition of my sculptures.