"Our Past Does Not Define Us" Painting

We live in a diverse, magical world of color filled with movement and shapes and life which occurs in a billion different, fascinating forms. As a self-taught artist born and raised in Western Canada, I endeavor to capture some of these amazing energies in paint. My favored mediums are acrylic paint and watercolors. Acrylic paints allow me to work on a painting with a minimum of wait time between coats, and also allow me to play with the effects of water and mediums. Watercolors are also fascinating as there are so many techniques to play with. Living near the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Calgary, Alberta, I am inspired to paint by the colors found in nature– this is the beginning point. I apply those colors to canvas and then watch what is happening. Most times the painting takes on a life of its own and I am merely a spectator, an assistant to provide the vehicle by which the colors are to be applied to the canvas. My work is largely abstraction because it allows the viewer to have their own experience of the colors, the magic and life itself – a multifaceted moment in time. The absence of created form allows for an individual experience where movement itself is a result of the eye encompassing the whole, with the colors themselves luring one into a different space, challenging one to create new personal associations and possibly even to question the instability of our own created reality. The textures that are applied to the canvas as well allow the experience to become more tactile, thereby enhancing the involvement of the viewer on multiple levels at once.