statement

Intuition is a key element in my work.
Successful artwork often finds its genesis in moments where the artist is powerfully drawn to an image or concept without initially understanding the source of the attraction. I embrace the urge to capture images that I find compelling, only later to discover through reflection what drew me to such images in the first place.

Eclectic subjects feature strongly in my artistic practice.
I am broadly curious about the world and its inhabitants, and this curiosity infuses the images I produce. One of the great privileges of photography is the possibility of discovering connections and reflections across what appear at first glance to be vastly different material and subject matter.

Narrative and context permeate my photography.
I seek to stimulate the viewerís imagination to supply a story or context for any given image. Narrative and contextual cues can arise from employing technical and structural photographic elements to suggest a scene, such as the use of strongly directional light, high contrast, and attention to dramatic details. Such cues can also arise from selecting subjects that surprise and engage viewers, encouraging them to spend time with, and delve deeper into, the image itself.

For example, pure geometric shapes that were essential to Suprematist painters such as Malevich or De Stijl artists like Mondrian can be found lurking in chaotic natural or manmade environments and discovering such instances of crisp form and preserving them in images is exhilarating, and can capture viewersí imaginations.

I also use photography to highlight ignored or forgotten parts of the everyday world, which is akin to another form of discovery or rediscovery. For example, part of my series Beyond Our View emphasizes the neglected importance of the world above us. As we go through our days of work and play, we visually focus upon that which relates to our work, our safety, and our interaction with others. Often, only when something from above enters our visual field do we spend any time or attention to that which is above us. We have a tendency to miss our complete surroundings. I enjoy drawing our attention to that which we miss.

ESCHER BLUE
"Escher Blue" initially offered to me some lovely colors, both vibrant and subtle, clearly reflected in a swimming pool in Michigan. It was only recently when I returned to that work and I began to play with the reflections, toying with the visual machinations somewhat as M. C. Escher might have done, looking for an easily recognizable image to become upon further reflection, something other than it initially seemed.

bio

born: 1948, Decatur, Illinois

education

University of Minnesota, MFA, 1973
Eastern Illinois University, BS in Education, 1970

selected publications

Kansas City Artists Coalition, 33rd Annual River Market Regional Exhibition, Kansas City, Missouri, p. 17 - 18, 2014

selected solo or two-person exhibits

East Gallery: Welcome to My World, Third Degree Glass Factory, St. Louis, Missouri, 2014
Series: Transport, Fleishman-Hillard Corporate Headquarters, St. Louis, Missouri, 2013
Series: Transport, Arts In Transit/Metro, St. Louis, Missouri, 2012
Series: Ghosts of the Prairie, Iowa Wesleyan College, Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, 2011

selected group shows

River Market Regional Exhibition, Kansas City Artists Coalition, Kansas City, Missouri, 2014
Urban Underground, Peoria Art Guild, Peoria, Illinois, 2014
Good and Evil, Art St. Louis Gallery, St. Louis, Missouri, 2014
Celebrating the Art and Design of the Automobile, Salisbury Concours d'Elegance, Des Moines, Iowa, 2013