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I find that my identity is literally submerged in the beauty, colors and concept of water as it pertains to being a symbol of life. My artistic goal has always been for my art to be an expression that, hopefully, invokes emotion within the viewer. My inspiration comes from personal observations and how water can give life; while being that which can also take life. It reflects beauty while sustaining vast amounts of beauty. As I strive to best represent my own personal character, my mission is to illustrate the beauty of God around us as it is reflected in the presence of water and the many colors of the rainbow. For water does not resist. Water flows. When you plunge yourself into it, you must allow yourself to feel its caress. Soak up its playful movement and incredible reflection of color. Water is life and color is the promise of such.
But my identity lives outside of that which water can intensify and thrives within the very rapid heartbeat of color and its infinite spectrum of vibrancy. Color can help to facilitate and fulfill some very basic human needs. Color can identify and specify necessary objects for survival and/or enjoyment; stimulate and work synergistically with all the senses; mark territory and manage personal space; symbolize abstract concepts and thoughts; express fantasy and wish; create illusions and ambience; emphasize or camouflage figures or objects; enhance self-image and personal esteem; produce an aesthetic response. Most important, the use and arrangement of color enable us to create beauty and harmony and express our personal taste, by doing so, provide us with a sense of accomplishment. |
The ever-intriguing question, “What color is that?” is a very common one. Color is important in the food we eat, the clothes we wear, our homes, cars, even our pets. . . and while the colors in a painting might be the first thing a viewer notices, there’s a lot more to color than meets the eye.
I believe that it is up to me, as an artist, to delve beyond just recognizing and naming colors to using colors for their inherent qualities, towards a specific end. I choose colors to produce a certain mood or atmosphere; to create space, light, and shadow; or to introduce symbolic associations. When you explore how color is used in works of art from different historical periods, you see that there is a great use to create meaning; direct the viewer’s eye; or express emotion. In addition to the vital role color and water play; a great deal of my work involves women. I believe this reflects my grounded sense of strength and vibrancy in the fluidity compared so eloquently to the female gender. As they have always said, "behind every great man is an even greater woman." For God placed upon women the responsibilities of compassion, inspiration and support. And I find that women are better in recognizing expression of emotions, the very thing I am hoping to invoke. The female advantage in emotional recognition becomes even more apparent under conditions of rapid presentation of stimuli. Hence the water and it’s play combined with the boldness of dark and light within color.
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