ARTIST STATEMENT

Art defines me. It is my absolute essence, so I paint because I have to. It is not only a compulsion and an obsession, but a necessity. Creativity allows me to depict my fascination with perspectives, textures and possibilities as I paint landscapes, patterns and women. I pay tribute to all women from goddesses to strippers and saints. I refer to them collectively as Egerians and let their often imagined stories enter my canvas with the colors they offer. Their colors do not cast shadows; they throb between their own life-stories. Underlined by these women, the recurring themes in my work are creation, the cycle of life, leaving and belonging. I view every canvas or wood board as an opportunity to give it meaning and life. 
  
At times I seek out tranquility, but mostly I am fascinated by the organic path of life leading toward the unknown. I depict on found wood, paper, and canvas the very abstract as well as complete realism. With the exception of the series “Whipped Cream and Other Paintings”, I do not use models: I paint from memory and rarely use any visible stimuli to create art. I agree with what is written by the editors of Réalités: “To paint from memory is to retain only the essential”. Nothing is ever planned or completely sketched out before I start painting. I need the liberty where a moment’s creative call might lead me. I believe that artists have a duty not to be sentimental and trivial, but to mirror back life’s strong emotions and passions while honoring their own vital force. I believe that any conscious act can manifest art.