Guard Against the Impostures of Pretended Patriotism Artwork

My work is an exploration of pop culture and social issues within the vast arena of pop art. These creative endeavors nearly always incorporate a dose of appropriation. Some of my work is quite graphic and singularly focused in nature. Other works tend toward what some might describe as collage, combining any number of images into a single painting. Utilizing images chosen from my digital library, I incorporate symbolism, portraiture, photographs, graphics, video stills, and/or text into my work. Although some images may be familiar to the viewer, I want to present the viewer with a new or unexpected context. A context that provokes thought or invokes humor. I work primarily in acrylic on canvas, incorporating an acrylic polymer image transfer technique. This technique allows me to digitally manipulate images, print them on a laser printer, and then adhere the ink from the printout onto the canvas. What intrigues and engages me about this technique are the endless opportunities presented, whether it be during the digital manipulation or after the image has been applied to the canvas. The images I utilize are part of the vast digitalized library I have been accumulating over the years. This includes my photographs, pages from magazines and newspapers, and images from the web. My library also includes photographs I have taken of old TV programs, commercials, and current events playing on my television. Creativity has always been at the center of who I am. As a kid, my school reports always included more drawings and graphics than words. I filled my schedule in high school with as many art classes as allowed. Following high school, I studied visual communications at The Burnley School of Professional Art in Seattle and received an Associate of Applied Arts degree. After school, I did freelance graphic design work. I worked at Tower Records in Seattle as the store Display Artist. I then literally ran away and joined the circus, spending several years traveling and working in public relations and marketing for Cirque du Soleil. Born and raised in Seattle and currently residing in Las Vegas, NV.