My recent paintings that focus on the subjects of place, home, and identity sometimes include people but often do not. Figures are either affixed, occupied and distracted, within their spaces or appear to have just vacated them, leaving evidence of their absence and anticipation for their eventual return.

This impression of someone having recently departed or one who’s about to arrive amplifies the experience of the empty spaces, which are otherwise full of detail. The paintings take as a starting point the limit of photography and use photos as a catalog of memories to allow for an extended readdressing of a moment. The vantage takes the broadest possible view of the space depicted—like an establishing shot in cinema, looking through a doorway or from a far—and cultivates a personal sensibility. The titles are often reflections on and collaborations with poetry, prose, and lyrics; they begin the telling of a story where an interior space becomes a portrait of its inhabitants.