The Collector

Having always been a collector of interesting things, I choose objects for my still life paintings for their shape or color, but mostly for the way they react to dramatic light. As a young bachelor my studio table was in my living room, with my back to the windows that illuminate much of my work. The vertiguous quality of this painting came from spinning constantly in my studio chair, observing detail then turning back to paint it. Maybe I was a bit dizzy at the time, but it was through this painting that I realized I could manipulate space by altering the perspective of the objects. Painting from sunlight also brings the movement of light and shadow, a challenge I used to my advantage in this painting, working on the objects to the right only in the morning, and moving to the objects on the left in the afternoon. The light seems to come from all directions, radiating throughout the composition.

Best of Show Rocky Mountain National, 1996

First Place, The Artist’s Magazine competition, 1996

First Place, Winsor & Newton annual competition