Most of my current work examines the definition of object, specifically by highlighting the relationships between the physical properties we use to understand and determine that which is an object. For instance, physical properties like scale, position, number, relation, and composition create a set of boundaries and conditions that aid our mind in comprehending the relative stability of objects, either visibly or tangibly.

The definition of object often appears to be an issue of perception: that our understanding of “object” is based on properties intrinsically linked to our senses. However, physical properties can change while our understanding of the object remains constant, like how a piece of fruit rotting over time is still essentially the same piece of fruit, despite being perceivably different over that period of time. Do objects then have some sort of intrinsic “structure” that defines them as such; separate from their physical properties?

This contradiction, physical properties or underlying “structure” as the basis for a definition of object, is a duality. And like most dualities, it suggests that the truth is neither one nor the other, but something else, less immediately understandable. In that way, my work does not try to clarify the definition of object or any accidental or essential physical properties involved with such a definition. Instead, it positions these properties together, contrasting them, conflating their relationships, forcing the viewer to come to a realization about the manner in which they perceive.

I also deal with this issue of perception by creating a verisimilitude or surreality in the work. In other words, I try to visually create a sense of reality without producing something that is in fact a representation of reality. I do this so that the relationship between what it appears to be and that which it is actually, becomes more confused. I found that this is best accomplished by mimicking processes found in nature or that seem natural, as opposed to mimicking the actual appearance of things in reality. By slowly building up paint, either through dripping, pouring, or the application of thin layers, my work utilizes methods that parallel growth in reality, both organically and inorganically. The same sort of thought process goes into the removal of paint in the work as well. However, the cutting and separating involved in the removal of paint serves a dual purpose. Not only does it aid in the examination of physical relation, but it also serves to make the viewer think about the physical construction (or destruction) of the work.

I have also been working with the idea of the multiple. Using multiples, especially as parts in a large wall or mass, is not only a way to address the physical properties of scale, number, and relation, but to also look at how those properties interrelate.