I have always been interested in recording the settings of our lives in the Midwest. My drawings and paintings are inspired by a sense of ‘home,’ a search for quiet respite of comfort and solitude. But this sense of home goes beyond the house to the gardens, open fields, and wooded groves in the landscape. The architectural element of the porch serves as a transition between inside and outside, architecture and landscape. The porch is the home’s initial shelter for visitors, presenting a first impression of comfort and welcome. Simultaneously, the openness of the porch encourages an opportunity to be a part of nature. It is this appreciation of nature, explored through an architectural frame of reference, that is so important to my work.

My work constantly demonstrates a fascination with space, exploring the possibilites of representing closed or open spaces on the 2-dimensional plane. There is always the urge to look between the trees, through the windows, from porch to porch. In order to combine these interests in spatial relationships, window reflections are a means to this end. The layering of reflected images, oftentimes the landscape, with objects seen trhough the glass of a window present curious frames of reference for the viewer. I have attempted to create visual puzzles that invite the viewers to enter, and solve for themselves the space of the painting.

Over the years my work seems to build on itself like a collection—landscapes, porches, reflections in windows—even portraits now appear in some of my paintings. The dynamics in the compositions rely on the manipulation of space, light and movement in order to present a chance moment. The narrative sense of ‘place’ or ‘home’ is left to the viewer. Perhaps that explains the frequent presence of chairs in my work, offered as an invitation for visitors to put themselves in the space of the painting.