Rage acrylic on canvas 6’x6’

After we have learned to speak, then what shall we say?

Art in the twenty-first century is inextricably connected to experience. Everything that we do, see, hear and experience can – and should -- be understood and explained in artistic terms. Contemporaneousness is now about authenticity and genuine expression, about the human condition in the present. Academic issues of illustrating, copying and writing are all the more significant as we understand imagery in expanded meaning in all new ways with the advent of digital media.

History and literacy are vital areas of knowledge for contemporary artists of all disciplines. Art will be embraced in new, necessary and undefined ways only after it is reinterpreted and thus freed from the old world (and particularly for Americans), the conventional European terms of definition.

Art can no longer be simply about the medium; rather it should to seek to reflect content. Technique for technique’s sake, in all of its’ complexities, has evolved into a preoccupation of the artisan. Technique is akin to a language, purely a means for conveying the message. While the language is essential, it is ultimately insignificant unless there is a purpose for its’ existence. Unless there is an essential meaning, then expression is unnecessary. The means for any message should logically be selected to enhance substance and so it is for art, which represents the contemporary.

In the twenty-first century there is much to observe, address, say, think and feel in terms of culture, humanity and morality. As we embark upon a new century, there is an enormous need for intelligent, modern commentary and for progressive art and art forms. Floating around us are so many situations, predicaments, messages and countless reasons to speak, to make dramatic expressions which can be heard and understood. In the global creative community, we presently have a great deal of work to do.

~artist's statement, 2006