At the broadest level my paintings are a focused exploration of color, texture and form. I utilize a saturated color palette, off-kilter compositional arrangements and a photorealistic painting style to direct and heighten the viewer’s attention in an effort to get him or her to thoughtfully consider and engage with the subject matter, objects to which they may pay little or no attention to in day-to-day life.

The subjects of my paintings are exclusively man-made, in particular vintage neon signs from the 1940s – 1970s. I also paint other objects that originate from that era – tin robots, bobblehead toys, old amusement park rides and the like. All my life I’ve felt a strange attraction to these things, and to the time period in which they were created. It was the era of the road trip and classic roadside “attractions” such as pink dinosaurs, Tee Pee motels, and coffee shops featuring futuristic Googie architecture. It was the age of the space race and a period of unbridled optimism in our country, where everyone was sure they’d soon be driving flying cars and enjoying endless leisure time thanks to the robots who would be doing all the manual labor.

I am unsure why I am so fascinated with this era. It seems strange to feel nostalgic for a time period in which I never lived – after all, neon’s “golden years” peaked and were already in decline before I was even born. I think on some level my work seeks to reconcile what was with what is by depicting objects that once signified such optimism in their current state of neglect and decay.