My style can be described as painterly realism. I carry on a lineage of late 19th-century painterly realists and impressionists like Sorolla, Sargent and Manet. Through painting directly my oil paintings are usually created in one or two quick sessions consisting of just a few short hours. 

PBJ & Jar of Milk, oil, 6 x 9" (15 x 22 cm) My inspiration often comes in quiet contemplation of a blank page in a sketchbook often with eyes closed. It’s spiritual for me; I like to think of the ideas generated as divine. Starting on a darker brown toned surface I gesture in a simple outline of the main masses. I then paint wet-on-wet making adjustments and corrections along the way, saving the details and highlights until the end. The main design element at work here is lighter objects set against a dark background creating a strong contrast.

Magnolia in a Mason Jar, oil, 10 x 8" (25 x 20 cm) I love to paint things familiar to me and living in the South I am surrounded by southern magnolias. Using an alla prima technique I began with a loose gesture to find placement, while also referring to my initial sketchbook sketch for composition. Painting wet-on-wet I will often scrape back areas to create a surface tac and work back on top, letting the underneath canvas show through, creating a depth and mystery in areas such as the jars transparency. Again I’m using a simple design strategy of light against dark creating contrast to draw the eye. 

Using the alla prima technique, I often begin on a toned hardboard panel. I like to use a full palette of colors (permalba white, cadmium yellow pale, cadmium red light, alizarin crimson, ultra blue, pthalo green) also including subdued hues such as ivory black and burnt sienna. 

Fried Rice, oil, 10 x 8" (25 x 20 cm) Nostalgic things like a Chinese takeout box often peak my interest and inspire me to paint them. For this work I was drawn to the nostalgia but also to the idea of the bright white box with contrasting red design. I also couldn’t pass up the thought of portraying the textures of the box and contents of the container. Again, painted in an alla prima manner, wet-on-wet, I worked quickly only slowing down to measure the design of the red bogota on the face of the container.

Using a medium of 50/50 Gamsol and linseed or walnut oil I paint wet on wet, pushing and pulling the paint. Scraping and dashing marks and colors energetically and precisely, I often use suggestions over detail to convey texture and light while striving to not overwork the image and retain the raw gesture and emotion. With my surface ready and my palette set, I begin by quietly looking closely at the subject before me. My aim is to discern the color and light before me in a personal way while striving to maintain brushstrokes and the hand of creation throughout. —

Crayons, oil, 8 x 6" (20 x 15 cm) I love painting glass and in particular Mason jars. I had the idea for this painting because I thought it would be fun to portray the colors distorted behind the glass. Using a direct painting approach I gestured in a simple placement of the large shape within a tight composition with as little negative space as possible. I was careful to look closely and measure by constantly comparing.  I then laid in thick color and scraped back with a palette knife to create a rustic effect in areas. I also used my fingertips to blur out certain areas creating lost edges, resulting in a greater illusion of reality. <