I first became interested in art while traveling with my
family. Drawing occupied my mind while on long road
trips. Comic books and paper back covers by Frank
Frazetta sparked my imagination. Due to my extensive
traveling and living in different states like, North and
South Carolina, New Mexico, California and Virginia I
have been exposed to different cultures within our
society. The most interesting place that I have lived in
was Misawa, Japan. There I was exposed to Japanese
culture. Intricate patterns in Japanese shrines and
temples fascinated my meticulous nature. During that
time I became interested in illustration. I mostly did
pen and ink work. After graduation high school in
Quantico, Virginia. I attended Virginia Commonwealth
University in Richmond. Classes in art history,
drawing and design, educated me in the styles and
philosophy of art, but I was really influenced by the
city, graffiti, and tattoos. I incorporate all of that in
my art now. Although I attended this university, I
consider myself to be without formal training in
painting. Since I prefer to experiment with design and
color on my own. In an effort to expand my creativity I
have worked in different mediums like watercolors,
pastels, and acrylic paint. The result of this cross
mixing of studies is my surrealist paintings which
fuses folk and contemporary styles. Every one of my
paintings is a representation of the collective
unconscious. A dream within a dream, I see patterns or
images in nature and human behavior that catches my
interest, but most all I consider my art to be dreams
that I want the spectator to relate to. Paintings usually
begin with a basic idea that arises from the position of a
figure or figures. I slowly work out the general
composition, thinking of the space and interaction in
which the figures will exist. The working process is
sometimes slow and meticulous, each painting
undergoes extensive transformation. Time spent on a
painting is directly related to the difficulty and
complexity of the subject chosen. Usually when finished
with a painting, someone asks me to explain the
meaning of the work. I feel it’s up to the audience to use
there own experience and come up with there own
interpretation.