Painting is my life. Working on other projects helps to expand my approach to the entire process. Never stop looking and observing what goes on around you. Critical thinking is a method of madness whose benefits might never be fully realized. Overall, I believe you gain a certain maturity of experience that ultimately serves to expand your entire vocabulary. Pushing concepts and filtering points of random thoughts into semi-coherent projects takes time, and doesn’t always make sense. Definitely a form of mental exercise that took me a very long time to appreciate.
Fifty Passing Moments …
Fifty Passing Moments – Taking passing photos of one spot over a period of two years. The original idea was to document the little church. As time went on, I realized that the church was not the focus. What became most interesting, was absolutely everything else. The building itself is static, while the world around that point is in constant motion. I am interested in time based projects. Thinking of small times in between major life memories. I was able to see Tehching Hsieh’s piece titled, One Year Performance 1980 – 1981 at the Tate Modern several years ago. That was pure brain fire. The final three collage pieces were inspired, in part, by Hockney’s Pearblossom Highway works. I struggled to find a way to adequately show everything at once and capture a sense of real time. The final product was the book project. Creating a book helps put a period at the end of the sentence. Even though I will still take a photo every time I pass that little church.
Conceptual People
This project has been the longest running series to date. The first few were made from scrap wood and sat around in my studio for quite some time. The idea of taking them out on the street and shooting photos … Didn’t happen right away. I consider them to be painted sculptures on a human scale, built to interact with viewers outside of galleries or studios. They are an unimposing form of street art communication that I enjoy. I try to give them just enough semblance of humanity to draw recognition without creating any specific identities. Most often, people start creating narratives on their own. Overall, reactions on the street have been surprisingly positive and inquisitive.
Having spent several years shooting them around Los Angeles has given them a place in history as well. Many locations no longer exist beyond the photos I have in storage. The documentary aspect of this whole project has become much more important in defining my own identity. I was here back then. Proof of life. All of these experiences directly influence paintings in the studio.
Craigslist People / 2026 Allstars collector card series –
I decided to create one, super rare, 500 count trading card series like no other. Each card is numbered and signed on the back. I consider every card to be it’s own art piece and up for trading on occasion. I would love to set up a table at some card expo and put them all out for sale. Generating conversation is a goal of mine when doing these kinds of projects. I enjoy the unscripted interactions and curiosity.
Craigslist has been a favorite doomscrolling time killer of mine for many years. I easily get lost in old cars and free stuff. Over time I started to notice patterns in the chaos. Things like people giving away pianos and chickens almost as often as couches and free dirt. However, I cannot resist searching for true Craigslist gold. I love finding the elusive, “shadow people” of magic hour. Finding one here and there is not all that unique, but gather together thousands of them over time, and you have yourself an army of unknown strangers. All equally unified in anonymity, completely characterized by the objects they are looking to sell or give away. Five hundred non portrait photos of no people.
Trading cards, like so many other once disposable hobbies of my youth, have grown to challenge my sense of value and worth for quite some time. Challenges that directly translate into the art life. Every artist has to make some sort of peace with their own sense of value in the system. Embrace it, reject it, even try to ignore it, we are all still in the same game. Not necessarily the most pleasant thought, but I choose to make art out of it. Perhaps a little therapy as well as commentary.
Doing Nothing
Ten times in six days – I did nothing for one hour. No background audio, no talking, no drawing, no distractions, just spending time in front of a lens. Turns out to be harder than I originally thought. The first days were the hardest, but the process became easier with each sitting. Eventually you care less about what the camera is recording. There is a time limit to holding your repose. I’ve never been friends with the mirror, so this was a difficult project. Overall, I feel like this was an experiment well worth the time. Perhaps loosely inspired by Bruce Nauman’s 1992 “Thank You” video piece. A bit less obnoxious but relevant.
This was my response to an SMC project prompt exactly one year ago this week.
Moments 01
“I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments in time will be lost … Like tears in the rain.” Roy
Moments 02
Other people’s forgotten memories. The random compilation of unrelated strangers playing familiar roles in lives we can only imagine. Questions without answers desire stories.