Artist Statement

I was born in Glendale, California. My childhood was shaped by the fact that my father was a combat veteran of World War II.  After his war time service, and subsequent return home from combat, my mother always said that my father had changed.  He was still a kind and gentle man, however after the war my father soon sought refuge in places that he found to be peaceful and beautiful. Without a doubt, the deserts of Southern California were those places. And those outings with my father shaped much of my art career. In the desert, we sought out rocks and formations of the earth to discuss what we had seen. Many people find the desert to be dry and riddled with death, however, I found the colors to be more alive than any city I had ever visited. Red Iron Oxide is found in many parts of the Mojave desert and this the color of rust is for me a color of life.

My love of found objects was also born in the desert. I would collect anything that struck me as vital and bring it home with me. Many years later I began to include a found object in each of my paintings. After I graduated with degrees in both Fine Art and Theology, the idea of using these found objects as a point of redemption came alive. I love taking items from the desert or the streets of Los Angeles and incorporating them into my artwork. Even if the objects are so subtle that the viewer may not even see them, they create an energy in the piece that aligns itself with my faith and my theory that all things can be redeemed. I also love textures to exist in my work, and I often encourage viewers to touch my paintings, because the oil of human hands makes the plastics in the acrylics that I use that much more human. And when you can touch artwork, you develop a viewpoint rarely accessible in the modern art world.

When I began to paint and create my art, I did not know where I was headed as and artist. Yet what remained important to me was that I was beginning my calling as a painter. After I began painting and working as a Priest, the idea came to me to create works that could benefit the members of my community. It always seemed to me that the public was constantly being asked to support either museums, or other cultural institutions. So I decided to take that theory and turn it on its head and use my art to support my community. I do not receive payments for my art, all the monies go directly to my congregation to help others in need.

My art has made me a better priest, and my faith has made me a better artist. We live in hurried times and are inundated with countless images. We have the capacity to immediately access a staggering wealth of information. Through my art, I am asking myself and those that would explore it, to slow down, look, touch and consider the essential colors, shapes and textures that can feed our souls.