The Art of Abstraction - Spiritual Alchemy

I literally paint with fire- flames from candles and torches. The medium is important to me, although the viewer does not need to know the methodology.  Often people think that "smoke on canvas" is the title of a work rather than the medium. Candles have always had deep meaning in art and the symbolism is important to me- the passing of time, suggestions of  faith in God (when burning), as well as the implications of  death, loss and corruption once extinguished. Flames can be the light in the darkness of a lonely individual as well as the light of hope, purification or cleansing.  The tension between these polarizing ideals leaves a rich foundation for the images.  

I tell people that I believe in spiritual alchemy.  I never give up on a painting - no matter how far over the edge it goes, I believe that my job is to find a way to redeem it.  Insisting on a solution - an order to the chaos... I do not try to deny the chaos, but to lean into it and allow it to fuel the work toward horizons yet discovered- horizons that would remain obscured if all had gone as planned.  I consider this much more than a happy accident.  My work is to meditate with the paintings to find the path through to the place I did not know could be found.    

I embrace chaos and strive to engage the viewer on an odyssey towards harmony in a world that seems unlikely to truly achieve it.