Observational painting

These charcoal works are from everyday objects and symbolize the confusion that humans experience in everyday life.

I keep a diary of drawings and writing to remind myself of the things that make me happy. One of the things I love to do is collect leaves. This is a drawing of those leaves. Even though they provide people so much happiness with their warm colors, they have to decay to do so. I wanted to reflect that idea in my drawing.

I drew the plastic bread bag in a way that gives it a surreal quality and makes it look like something people have never seen before. I enjoyed providing an unfamiliar look at everyday objects.

The wine bottles are blurred and brightly highlighted to show the confusion and sense of incapability that people feel. I used the wine bottles to evoke the idea of dizziness and confusion, but also to hint that sometimes alcohol provides clarity to people because they are less inhibited.

This piece is a self-portrait. I tend to laugh a lot in my life, but I wanted to explore my more serious side in this work. I put my face in a frame to show the distance between myself and the rest of the world. I am someone who carefully observes people and things from a distance. My internal world is always incredibly active, but I tend to keep that internal world protected from the outside. The scratches show my internal struggles, but they are only within the frame, showing a separation between my inner world and how I represent myself.