INSPIRATION & METAPHORS BEHIND THIS COLLECTION
This series is an ode—and what some could also see as a tongue n cheek mockery—to the pixilated world in which we are trapped in. the antithesis of hi-def all around us. A reprieve to the eye one could call it, the Pixalization reflects the progressive 20th century era of computers and other screen technology. We, more than ever, view fine art through the lenses of our screens instead of in person. Hi-def only keeps us drawn in, which leads to my fun overcorrection of hyperbolic pixels to cause the viewer to step back from the screen—in so rare and ironic fashion—in order to see the clearer picture. In essence, these pieces dust off and reactivate the reward centers of our brains that configure something out of focus back into focus.
I had an epiphany in December 2023 at Red Dot Miami when I was describing this body of work to people: Pixels are like atoms—the building blocks of digital 2d media and photographs which make the lens to which we see so much beauty in the world! I’m bringing those pixels to the forefront and appreciating the clean, stark, geometric aesthetics of the simple square that makes up our 2d world of pictures. This brings me to this art’s dual nature: abstract geometric up front but as you get farther away you appreciate the clarity of a realism portrait it is taking on. Thus, a well-known metaphor follows: the farther away we step back from something sometimes makes it more clear—you “see the bigger picture.”
This collection eludes to the spectrum of definition found in day-to-day photographic images—that we constantly revolve our lives around and scrutinize—and relegating that concept into a form of high art. It’s like a fusion of different styles that, combined with the subject itself, is bursting with layers: it’s fine art mimicking digitization while it is abstract masquerading as realistic (once you move far enough back). There is a certain beauty and appreciation to be found in each stage—from lo-def to hi-def—which the 21st century-eye (viewer/art connoisseur) is acutely aware of.
TECHNIQUE INSPIRATION
When I started doing collage 6yrs ago I was working off my painting skills and now I’m returning back to painting more intensively these days with the skills I cultivated doing collage work. My painting work complimented my collage and my collage work complimented back to my painting. How this style reflects the mosaic style of antiquity can just as much reflect the pixelated world of the Digital Age.
HUMAN RELATIONS: UP CLOSE BUT SO FAR AWAY
Interestingly, with this art style: the subject comes to life—looks MORE realistic—when you look at it at a side angle. You would think it would be out of focus but it has the opposite effect. This actually reminds me of knowing a person. We so often take them at face value, literally, by relying mostly on our focal vision. It is a teaching moment in the practice of defining not just art but individuals, too: there are two dimensions to everyone. There is the up close (in the moment) and the observations from afar (the time away from them) which gives us the overall consensus of this individual—that third multi-dimensional layer of every human being if we yearn enough to find it. It is only THEN in those seemingly inconsequential viewpoints does the true character composite and identity of that person reveal itself to us.
MONA LISA 2021 oil on canvas 30X80” For full collection, press here