Uncle Abe Painting

My intentions, when describing my work in a broad sense, are to immerse people in environments of grounding and a real relationship of solace with the work. I do this with a somewhat temporary feel of each painting, each textile piece, and each collection of photographs. I like to inspire people to sit with the work and with themselves. They may see something that reminds them of a personal life experience they’ve had, without that something being overt and invasive. Although my photographs and paintings make up the bulk of my current body of work, I see painting and photography as natural processes of expression, something that will never leave me. However, I do separate this from my practice as my intentions to be seen and heard as well as the mediums often deviate from the paintbrush or the camera. My work often explores my own experiences of love, life, joy and suffering, where I will visually describe specific moments or feelings personal to me with my own imagery. Having experienced post-traumatic stress, my practice serves as a breathing space in which I can ponder on emotions and debate their functions and importance in a practical, physical way. I enjoy wanting to reach out, with my work, and wanting to comfort viewers in times of adversity, or purely giving the notion of a joint experience, or empathy.