All things that surround me influence what I do and which direction I go with my art. To observe and listen how people relate to each other, our daily rituals, the different idiosyncrasies that everyone has, looking at photographs or reading about all different age groups in various cultures and the interactions between them has brought a realization of similarities in all human behavior. Not only being able to see the likeness of our species, but the connections we have to other animals as well. I use these evaluations to bridge cultural and geographical boundaries and bringing different ages, sexes, races and species to a level ground and the diverse ways we can learn about ourselves. Whether it is world history, current events, the littlest crevice that is in a tree trunk, the color of a rusted dumpster or my 6 year old’s drawing of his “sister as a potato”, all are constantly stored in my subconscious so when sculpting a figure out of clay, painting, or using other media, I will consciously or subconsciously dip into that reservoir and use it to create an idea and say something about my personal experiences or things I feel strongly about.

My reservoir is filled with images of beautiful nature, diversity of peoples, wildlife, family, rebirth and happiness as well as poverty, racism, death, commercialism, deterioration, and hopelessness. These dichotomies play out in my pieces with trying to say something about me, my thoughts and my surroundings. I learn about my personal thought process and the works that are created by allowing the media I use to speak to me. I let my intuition lead my thoughts while the material I use guides my hands to translate simplified expressions and feelings into something more universal yet personal to the viewer.