Redtree Times

I have never aspired to make my private life available in such a public forum but there came a point where my work was creating enough questions and interest that I felt I should make an effort to talk a bit about the work and how it evolved.  For those not familiar with my work, I am a painter of what I would primarily call stylized landscapes.  I have also called them “internal landscapes” because they are not reflective of any one place or time and are generally concerned with mood and emotion rather than narrative.  In other words, I want you to feel something emotionally when you look at my work rather than tell a story.

What I would like to do with this blog is to introduce my work and its evolution, talk a bit about the process and some of the thought behind it, and fill in some biographical stuff with a few stories here and there.  Hopefully, in a pain-free, enjoyable manner for all involved.

This is a recent painting, “Coming to a Realization”, which I think is a good example of the style and subject of much of my work.  It has the strong lines and saturated color that marks much of my work and the central character in this piece is a red tree, an image which permeates my work and has become my signature.  I will talk a bit more about the RedTree in future posts.  This piece is, to me, about taking stock of one’s own life and realizing all that you are as well as all that you are not.  Now I stress that this my interpretation, what I see in the painting and what I take from it.  Someone else will hopefully fill in the blanks of the painting with  thoughts and details from their own experience.  That is when a piece truly begins to have a life that extends beyond the surface of the painting.

Anyway, this is the beginning of this blog.  I hope I can give some insight about my work to those who seek it and look forward to hearing from those with questions or comments. Most of all, enjoy!