statement

My work explores the way in which environments and landscapes are altered by our consumerist culture and nature's ability to reclaim the spaces and things that we abandon as a result of this habitual cycle. Most recently, it has been inspired by my time in and around the Upstate of South Carolina's landscape dotted with the deteriorating infrastructures of old mill villages, empty storefronts, and industries of days gone by. This setting includes the intense variety of color that engulf the mountains during autumn, the faded hues of old commercial signs, and the dark tones of dilapidated structures scattered along the back roads of the south. This is a place blanketed by invasive plants such as kudzu and Japanese honeysuckle, which feverishly grow wherever they wish, enveloping everything in their path with an impenetrable blanket of green. The densely layered compositions and aged surfaces that are characteristic of my work are a reflection of my desire to emulate these settings, and to convey through the patina of wear and exposure the ephemeral nature of life. They are my interpretations of an oxymoron: a beautiful detritus..  

bio

born: 1979, United States

education

Rhode Island School of Design, MFA, 2008
The University of Texas, BFA, 2006

selected awards/honors

Jerome Residency, Highpoint Center for Printmaking, Minneapolis , MN, 2012
West Prize Acquisition Recipient, The West Collection. Philadelphia, PA, 2009
John A. Chironna Scholarship, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI. 2007
Joan W. and J.Cecil Rhodes Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Art, The University of Texas, Austin, TX, 2005

selected publications

Visual Overture Magazine, Volume 2; Featured Artist. Atlanta GA, 2011. Juror: Dan Price
The West Prize; 10: Exhibition Catalogue. Philadelphia, PA, 2009
Arthouse; New American Talent: The Twenty-First Exhibition, Austin TX, 2006
The Open Studios Press; New American Paintings, Western Edition, Boston, MA, 2005  

selected solo or two-person exhibits

Rosalux Gallery: Nature's Beast, Minneapolis, MN, 2012
The Chapman Cultural Center: Beautiful Detritus, Spartanburg, SC, 2011
Pisgah Gallery: The Bar Show, Black Mountain, NC, 2010
The Flood Gallery: Plastic, Austin, TX, 2006

selected group shows

Martha Gault Gallery, Slippery Rock University: RE GREEN, Slippery Rock, PA 2012
DeVos Art Museum: North of the 45th Parallel, Marquette, MI, 2012
International Print Center: New Prints 2010/ Winter, New York, NY, 2010
NEXT art Fair: The West Collection, Chicago, IL, 2009