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Article From Cincinnati Enquirer

A couple weeks ago, I found out that the gallery I was showing with was suddenly tossed out on the street. From what I can tell, there was no legitimate explanation for this eviction. Perhaps this sort of thing just happens when your business partner winds up being a bigoted, gun-toting, jesus-freak, but that’s just my opinion.

Pardon me if I do come across a tad bitter, but you would be too if you discovered that eight of your paintings were carelessly placed outside in the blistering heat. However, my friends Chris and Jonathan were determined to make the best of the situation. Unwilling to take any guff from the swine, they organized and staged a ‘Renegade’ opening in a pair of U-haul trucks parked in front of the gallery.

The event caught the attention of the local media, and this article was ran as a result. I had initially driven down to Cincinnati in order to recover my work, and I was in attendance when the reporter arrived. It is always good to receive press, especially after something as frustrating as this.

For more information visit The Northside House.

Here are some snapshots of new works. I mentioned in a previous post that I am experimenting with diptychs, so today I am presenting you with three more. These paintings will be included in my upcoming exhibition at Red Spider Studio.

Forty Virgins

Forty Virgins, Acrylic and Ink on Canvas, 40″ X 60″, 2010

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New American Landscape Invite

On Friday, I attended an opening for New American Landscapes at Las Manos Gallery in Chicago. This group exhibition showcases the work of twenty-seven artists featured in the upcoming book New American Landscapes, which will be published this May by Sprocketbox entertainment.

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My current work focuses on the manipulation of fears and desires by mass media and popular culture. The work is part autobiographical and part social commentary. Through the process of drawing and painting, I am able to look back at various points of my life and re-examine what my basic fears and desires were, and how those emotions were fed by the media sources I consumed.

Terror Matrix A

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I figure that the only way to follow a studio tour is to present a snapshot of new work. I’ve spent the past three months toiling away on a new body of work for my upcoming solo exhibition at Red Spider Studio. This exhibition is titled, Evolution of Fear, and it opens on May 22nd, 2010. I thought it would be fun to preview a selection of those works, and then discuss some of the concepts and ideas behind them. I intend to do this in a series of installments over the next two weeks leading up to the exhibition.

Parting of the Sensory

The first piece that we’ll explore is titled, Parting of the Sensory. This painting is a diptych done in acrylic and ink on two 30” X 40” canvases, (40″ X 60″ overall). I am experimenting with the diptych format because it permits me to work larger, and it makes the work easier to transport.
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My goal for this site is to record various art related activities. Since most of my time is committed to studio practice, it makes sense to begin there with a brief studio tour.

Studio Entrance and Storage Alcove

My studio space is located on Lake Street in the West Loop, and it is a convenient walk from the Ashland ‘L’ stop. The building is called the Butchershop, and back in its heyday, during the mid 90’s to early 2000’s, they used to throw all sorts of art events and shows. However, at one point they gained too much exposure and the City forced them to tone it down. The Butchershop was showcased in the exhibition Artists Run Chicago at Hyde Park Art Center. I moved into this space in July 2008, well after it was subdivided into its current configuration of workspaces.

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