I’ve been considering myself an artist since around the time I turned 24
when I realized it was the way I was spending most of my free time. I’m
self taught, didn’t go to art school and never thought of myself as a visual
artist growing up. This is an important part the story for me because I
grew up believing that i couldn’t draw or paint. It wasn’t until I stopped
trying to make any particular kind of art and just made work that I related
to, that I began to feel confident in my process. I feel fortunate that I could
muster up some faith in my early work (which was literally populated by
stick men) and that I kept doing it for the joy of creation rather than being
discouraged that I wasn’t technically skilled. A lot of times, that stuff
follows after but the most important thing to me has always been that i
enjoy the process.
The most common phrase I use to describe this illustration work is
“conceptual cartoon.” I try to deal with concepts that are far reaching and
relatable at the same time. I believe that most of the really important
things we deal with, we share, regardless of our place in society, our
upbringing or our age. Kids at 7 years old and folks at 50 have a lot in
common when you get down to what they’re really seeking from this life
or pondering from day to day. That being said, I like to walk the line
between a simple children’s story and worthwhile book of poetry. The
majority of the most meaningful revelations that I’ve come to in my life
are, at once, deeply profound, oddly silly, and simple. This is the type of
art I’ve always been drawn to, and I feel really lucky that I now get to
spend my time creating it.
There’s a lot of daydreaming and pondering that goes into the work, two
things I find quite indispensable to the enjoyment of my time here. Most
of the work presented is over-saturated concepts derived from musing on
things I’ve experienced, things I’ve watched occur, or things I’ve learned
from little stories I’ve picked up along the way.
The inspiration for the work is much like a little windup up musical box,
popping out suddenly, at random as I wander about. I have found that, for
me personally, the more work I make the more the ideas pop up and the
more readily interesting ideas find their way into my head. Knowing this I
do try to spend TONS of time making art, excited to see what shows up
next.
I currently reside in the little mountain town of Thomas, West Virginia.
There, aside from making art, I deeply enjoy writing, looking at clouds,
walking in the woods, marveling at the innate brilliance of common
things and having small parades with the fine people I’ve been lucky
enough to come to know and love.
