Night Lights

A spotlight in a yard. A light on the side of an expressway. An underpass. The things we encounter around us, the ordinary and the mundane, take on meaning when filtered through the imagination. It is the confrontation between those things - the space around us - and that which lies within the mind and heart – the inner space - that evoke such meaning. Night is often a metaphor for the hidden, the barely known. In darkness, the things around us become important for not everything is visible. In these paintings of often-overlooked places, night suggests the anxieties, the longings and mysteries that lie within all of us. Here, artificial light takes on special significance. Whether it's a street lamp or shaft of light from a backyard bulb, these night lights are beacons of sorts, suggesting that amidst this darkness we create havens for ourselves. As human beings, we too often travel in darkness, searching for clues, not knowing the exact direction ahead. Here, a building glowing in the dark or a light in a window become metaphors for that search. Like dreams, these paintings give hints but don't reveal their exact meaning. Like dreams, they wait for the dreamer to reveal their message.

Working Methods I do a series of pencil sketches, charcoal drawings and color notes on site, then develop the composition and paint in my studio. I frequently go back to the site to study color. This is a departure. In my early work, I painted exclusively on site. I believe this approach gets at more of the emotional truth of what I'm seeking in painting. With subject matter, I search for things that have both a visual and emotional resonance. I can best describe it as a trigger. Something goes off in my brain that is a fusion of a visual idea that is linked to an emotional response. It is the eye and the brain working together. These "triggers" happen in my daily life as I am driving or walking down the street. If the call is strong enough, I usually find myself at the same spot a few days or weeks later with a sketchbook in hand.