My current series, called Time Machines, is a collection of mixed media paintings incorporating 3-dimensional, sculptural elements. To create these paintings, I apply acrylic paints, plasters, and transparent glazes to the canvas (or masonite) using a combination of airbrushing and traditional painting techniques. I then mount attachments, such as antique or salvaged hardware, cables, and carved wood pieces, to the edges of the painting. Some of the pieces have new hardware or other constructed elements that I’ve aged to feel as if they were a century old.  The attachments flow out of the paintings and into the “real” world, creating an illusion that blends reality with the painted imagery. 

In creating my Time Machines, I am inspired by the art, architecture, and general aesthetics of the Art Nouveau movement (1890-1910). In fact, many of these "machines" were made to look as if they were from 1901, which was the peak of Art Nouveau. This influence also informs my stylized approach integrating organic flowing imagery and curvilinear forms. The modern look of industrial landscapes, machinery, and the endless networks of cords and pipes that I see around my studio in Chicago have also inspired me to add an element of urban futurism to these pieces. Ultimately, I want my Time Machines to give the experience of glimpsing into another era or dimension.

Another one of my ongoing series is called Remembering the Future. These paintings portray a “photo-surrealistic” view of the future, rendered in a style that appears to be aged (to suggest the melding of future and past). This series shows an all-seeing future of floating sea creatures, industrial wastelands, hovering networks of machinery, and UFOs foraging flooded landscapes.

I also enjoy creating original works on paper and illustration board, inspired by both my Time Machines and Remembering The Future series. I paint these works on paper to look like archived fragments glimpsing into another space or time, and often tear the edges of the paper by hand to lend an aged feel to the pieces.