My recent portraits reflect my interest in subjects that I can never personally experience. I work with images of people that I will never meet. My interest is driven by this detachment and the desire to come to know a subject more fully through work alone.

The portraits focus on adults who have been classified as "missing and endangered" by US government agencies. My process begins with a tiny photo of the individual and the details of their disappearance. The surface pattern of these paintings mimics the pixels of a screen, creating a further detachment from the subject. I am drawn to the intimacy of painting a portrait combined with the impossibility of any intimacy with a person who has vanished. Through layers of media and representation a stranger can become known.