Throughout my career, I have always found inspiration in the landscapes of home, narrowing the definition of the word over time from the sprawling fields and the vast industrial campuses of the rural Midwest to the length of the street on which I live and, now, to the view from the roof of my Chicago homestead. Dominating the compositions of my high-relief paintings are treetops, bursting with color, between blocks of buildings and houses. In my acrylic gouache works on paper, I elevate these trees from mere elements of a landscape to singular symbols.

While each of my works is motivated by true-to-life views of the landscape, I push my subject matter toward the ideal. Instead of being bound by the imperfections of reality, I prefer the adventure of building it myself, which not only lets me emphasize the maximum aesthetic potential of natural elements, but also allows for endless exploration of this rather intimate subject matter of “home.”