Charlie Parker (The Bird) Drawing

Unrest is what I strive for in my pieces. To be more honest, unrest is what I strive for when I am not being lazy. Discovering what is within and connecting that to the outside world is the zenith of an artist’s experience with each piece... but it is daunting at times. As I begin any piece, I have one, very simple idea typically. It is that I will draw a picture of an elephant, a seal, a historical figure, etc. As I continue in the process, it takes on deeper and deeper meaning. I find myself more enraptured with the subject. Compassion, anger, longing, etc., can all be part of the process that creates the final piece. These pieces begin from a sketch pad, which is then scanned. I then digitally color the subject and create background elements. At first this process formed from mere convenience. I had lost my studio, and placing a lot of work in a sketchpad and computer took up decidedly less space than large canvases. However, I have always been interested in the very crisp lines of graphic design, and through this process I can maintain the hand drawn, organic feel of the image with the crispness and definitive space provided by the computer. I really enjoy this juxtaposition of style, and I feel it gives my work a unique spirit. Throughout the years I have been influenced by artists from Daumier, Giacometti, Sargent, Wyeth, Marin, Bellows, Hopper, Calder and Miro. I’m sure I’m forgetting a few. All of these influences find their way into my work at any given time. The more I spend in any book of an artist, I see a definite force of that artist’s influence in my work. My inspiration comes from doing the work. I find inspiration often by mistake in a piece that may or may not seem to have any significance when I begin, so I know that putting the work in is the best way to find inspiration. I was born in Rock Hill, SC (a stone’s throw from Charlotte, NC,) and then moved to Atlanta when I was in high school. I attended The University of West Georgia from 1997 to 2001 as a geology major. I then traveled through Italy and France. Through my travels I learned to love art. I was always able to draw, but I didn’t see much use in it. Now I did, and became fully enveloped in that pursuit. I applied and was accepted to the University of Georgia’s Lamar Dodd School or Art from which I graduated in 2004. Life got in the way of art for a very long time, as I took jobs from graphic design, ad sales, and firefighting.