Life often strikes me as a string of moments, like a series of film stills, in which we observe ourselves. I paint people experiencing these moments of profound self-awareness and growth; when the rest of the world drops away and we are left bare. My paintings have the visceral quality of memories or dreams, when the image is reduced to the essential, and the mood is what draws your focus, not the specific details. My subject matter comes from my own memories and experiences that feel in some way universal. I have found that certain kinds of settings tend to lead people inward, and to me the rural landscape is a nursery for the soul. My memories of growing up in Maine are a great source of inspiration. Though my subjects usually stand alone, I am less interested in loneliness than in the way being alone makes us feel most alive and connected to our true nature. Sometimes even being unhappy can have a certain beauty if it makes us experience things more intensely.