Fragments of memory lie embedded in my paintings – eroded, faded, distorted, and incomplete. Through painting I excavate memory and explore the effects of time on perception of the past.

I use a synthetic paper, which allows the oil paint to move around on the surface and take shape on its own. I let the fluid interaction of the paint, medium, and turpentine lead the direction of the painting. In the initial stages of the painting I allow for unexpected results. I then begin to guide the paint, forming horizontal bands with a brush, my hands, squeegees, sponges, and rags, responding to initial marks and building up the surface. There is a constant push and pull between being in and out of control. I sand, scrape, scratch, and rub back into the surface, paying equal attention to the addition and subtraction of layers. I am interested in the accumulation of time represented in the layers. Subsequent layers cover what came before, but the past layers are not completely obliterated.

In the sanding away of the image, traces of marks that came before remain but are disconnected and incomplete. Areas of the paintings are clear and in focus, and others are blurred and obscured. In certain paintings there is an impression of memory that has been faded and eroded by time. The subtle disappearance is like that of a photo worn by sunlight. While in other paintings, areas of paint have been scraped off with a knife, ripping away some of the paper, suggesting a sense of frustration in searching for what is unattainable.

As my work has developed, the reference to landscape has become more ambiguous, oscillating between a distant vista and an exposed cross-section of earth. The horizontal zones may be seen as strata, the geological layers alluding to layers of emotional experience. I want to expose what is usually protected and hidden under the surface.