This series of oil paintings are an amalgamation of emotive, cognitive, and action-based gestures. When I think about gestures I think of emotion. The word gesture in Spanish is “gesto” meaning to move or be moved. Motion is both literal and implied throughout the act of making a painting and within the finished work of art. Through an interplay of color and form, the paint’s movement can appear both controlled and expressionistic. The painting itself functions as a transmitter of information, rather than an object.
Similar to the stenciling techniques used in my mixed media work, I cut from large scraps of paper to create barriers to paint within and then later remove that paper to break the shapes and create a sense of depth and space. Working within the confines of color, shape, and pattern allows me to annihilate and challenge the borders that I built for myself. The process is a balance between responding to mark making and discovering unpredictable situations through the exploration of form and color.
I create paintings that combine the visual vocabulary of abstraction and expressionism by layering and juxtaposing incongruous forms, textures, and colors. Through a varied combination of studio techniques and processes, these paintings slowly reveal themselves. They are the synthesis of an experiential reaction to the materials I utilize, beginning with deliberate shapes and marks that are sourced from cut and torn paper. As I build or deconstruct the surface of a painting, I am engaged in a combination of inductive and deductive reasoning.
Painting is a manifestation of experience and memory. It is a language that embodies an intuitive path while making aesthetic choices through deliberate moves. In this sense, my paintings are equally representational and abstract. They reflect my inner world and the environment around me. Combining disparate materials and forms alludes to how memories are constructed, fade, or change over the course of time. With a multitude of sources and recollections, the push and pull between abstraction and representation is reflective of our times.
