How art came into your life?
My background in art began when I was a child taking art lessons from my Grandma. She was a professional artist in Door County, Wisconsin so I was surrounded by her art and always admired her oil paintings, landscapes, and mosaics. Growing up, I found ways to create my own art and took classes through high school and college. In college, I spent a lot of time printmaking and doing graphic design. I first explored painting in depth for my senior show and from that moment on, I fell in love with the medium. It’s such a flexible avenue for creativity and it really captures the energy that I want to convey. The possibilities of painting are limitless—the mediums I explore in painting range from wood panels, to canvas, to objects, to walls and buildings.
Why is abstract art important?
Abstract art removes any recognizable subject of a painting. Often times in a representational work we empathize with the subject matter—projecting ourselves into the story or identifying with the subject. What I love about abstract art is that its non-representational and its engagement is purely an emotional response in the first person. We must face it directly and interact with the work in its fullness of emotion and ideologies. Often times I find abstract works articulate the inarticulate aspects of life—they are an experience in themselves, rather than depicting an experience. For me, abstract work is very spiritual in nature and takes on its own living spirit—articulating truths and questions about life, faith, God as the Creator of the universe, and our human experience in the world.
What tips do you have for beginner artists who are trying to find their own style?
Explore. Art is action based, it is a behavior. It requires doing and one of the worst things is to sit and think about what you will paint next. I find that you must pick up a brush, spend time with it, and take risks in the action of creating. There are no mistakes—often times when a painting does not go as planned, it turns into something much greater than expected and becomes more beautiful and human. There is a surrender that must occur with creating and that requires the artist to go along with the adventure. It is amidst this process when your uniqueness as an artist will begin to unfold.
Tell me about your current project.
I am currently gearing up for an exhibition this fall with Alida Coury Interiors and Calia Stone Boutique as part of the River North Design District Fall Gallery Walk in Chicago. There will be a curated selection of my recent work and a bunch of other galleries participating. It’s basically a month long event with collaboration between other artists, galleries, and interior designers—I’m pretty excited about it. In addition to this, I am working through a handful of summer commissions and as always, staying diligent in my own studio practice.