To have personal bias is to be human. Recognition is the first step in actively redefining these systems of thought.
My collection relies on the innate intimacy of the human form as a channel for projection to bring these biases to light. Each composition includes two or more figures who, by nature of being human, form a relationship within the frame of the painting. By combining disparate source material, including a number of figure paintings and family photographs, I form unified but psychologically charged relationships that are unusual, evocative, and rich in implied narrative. This collection is meant to be viewed as a whole, rather than as autonomous artworks, functioning much like a Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)⎼projective psychological tests using ambiguous pictures to stimulate the subject’s interpretative story for analytical purposes. As narratives are projected onto each piece, thematic patterns emerge, revealing the viewer’s personal bias.
Equally important to my work is the materiality of the painted surface. I pursue a simultaneous level of realism and aesthetically satisfying abstraction in my work. Continually adjusting this balance between representationalism and geometric simplification provides a challenge that sustains my creative engagement with the process while also enhancing the usefulness of these paintings as tools for projection. Leaving informational gaps prompts the automatic subconscious response to fill in details, allowing viewers to more easily engage in the active role of supplying narrative.