Plates

Plates are organized in reverse chronological order. For additional insight, please read the artist’s statement.

HUMANSCAPE, 2021-

HUMANSCAPE comprises a series of monumental portraits depicting the faces of individuals the artist has encountered on the street. While conversations were brief, parts of these exchanges were recorded, with permission, on the artist’s cellphone. In a museum or gallery setting, these audio files can accompany the artwork perhaps by means of a QR code.

HUMANSCAPE examines the tension between the city and the people who must endure its challenging environment, especially those individuals most underrepresented in society.

The project touches on a number of current social issues such as homelessness, mental illness, suicide awareness/prevention, diversity, and inclusion.

Each image dim: 50×50 inches

Media: Oil and ink pens on paper or canvas

Please click on a thumbnail to enlarge the image.

The Process

Scholars encourage museum and gallery visits to observe original artwork in person, the way the artist intended it to be experienced. By treating oil and ink like graphite, the man’s face (below) appears to be a continuous tone, monochromatic image. However, the closeup of his eye at right reveals the artwork to be composed entirely of small black markings. When optically blended, the illusion of this strictly additive process is realized.

Precipice, 2022

This work was inspired by a photo the artist’s son took of himself just three months before he lost his long battle with depression. Dated June 21, 2014, the picture was the last file on the young man’s camera.

Dimensions: 72 x 108 inches

Media: oil pens on unstretched, pre-primed canvas

Click on a thumbnail to enlarge the image.

Threshold, 2020

The concept of impermanence is an essential doctrine of Buddhism. It teaches that all human existence is temporary. The artist experienced an enlightened moment when he witnessed the transitional beauty of his father’s approaching death, an aspect of human existence that is as consequential as birth itself.

Dimensions: 36 × 72 inches (triptych)

Media: graphite on 4×6″ paper sample cards

threshold

Perpetual Dialogue, 2019

This project imagines the visual experience of the city through the eyes of an individual suffering from clinical depression. The inspiration for this project came from a conversation between the artist and his teenaged son who battled this disease for seven years.

Dimensions: 4.5 × 30 ft.

Media: oil and ink pens on white Rives de Lin paper (350 gsm)