December 2008

Paintings on view at Fremont Jewelry Design during the month of January. Opening reception Friday, Jan. 2nd, 6-9pm.

3510 Fremont Place N, Seattle WA, 98103. 206-547-5551

Artist Statement:
In my continuing exploration of the ocean through the medium of oil paint, I’m reflecting on all the roads I’ve traveled, and the ocean that I always find my way to at the end of them.
In the past seven years, I’ve lived with forty people in ten different locations. I’ve worked as a barista in fifteen different coffee shops, and as a graphic designer for three different companies. With all this chaos and flux, the eternal, unchanging nature of the ocean has always lured me and felt like my home. Again and again, its waves emerge as my expression whether I’m painting in a friend’s basement, barefoot on the porch of another rented house, after-hours in the storefront of a frame shop, or crammed into a 5’x5’ school studio.
In this way, these paintings are a translation of the ocean through the eyes of someone who lives far from it. They are full of the longing one feels for an old lover who has become more precious because of their absence.

Paintings on view Dec 15- Jan 15th.

Artist & Craftsman Supply, 4350 8th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98105. 206-545-0091

Artist Statement: “B-sides and Rarities”
This show offers a glimpse of the often-unseen drawings and paintings that form the process of exploration through artistic academia. On view will be those pieces that stood out to me from the piles of work that line my path through classrooms and studios over the last ten years of study. I chose them for the energy they contain— raw, some of them unfinished, they reflect those moments that I was totally absorbed in making new discoveries.

Putting it all together… This was a great venue for this kind of show. There was more variety than I usually put up– and I brought way more pieces than I would need. The A&C guys were great help– donating last-minute materials, giving occasional input and swingin those hammers with me. Thanks, guys!

They even let me sign the wall!

This would be a beautiful thing to look out your window and see except on the day of your well-publicized reception!

Had a great time regardless! Thanks to those of you who ventured out of your houses that night to get there! And to those who missed it, the paintings will be up until January 15th.

What began as a move to new studio space became a move to a new living space as well… a total restructuring of my life. My work in the last couple months, (and lack of blog entries!) has been marked by this transition. I painted my last self-portrait directly on a mirror as commentary of my shifting environment– the figure relating to an ever-changing ground. I came up with the concept as I was looking for another room to rent in a house with roommates, and finding none that satisfied me. I realized now is the time to strike out on my own, to gather all my possessions that were usually spread out in bigger living situations, and condense them down to a 200 sq. ft. apartment. The gesture of the pose is me contemplating whether or not I can do it. The phrase also works on another level– the issue I’ve always had as a non-conformist: not wanting anyone to put me in a box, and always being aware of not doing that to others. Further, as I realize there are other ways to live than I had previously accepted for myself, I’m questioning the ways in which I create art that might be different from what I’ve been accepting for myself as well. I’m thinking of the box I had always fit myself within– and whether it may be time to break out of it.