Artist Statement

The concept behind my work focuses on capturing the way light behaves when projected onto glassware. I have always been intrigued by the distortion that occurs when curved, transparent surfaces interact with each other.  In my series I used a limited range of three to four values using the rendering technique of cross-hatching to capture bold values and give the viewer a dramatic, stylized depiction of a series of glasses.My work started more abstractly, looking at the work of Morandi, Fish, and Frank Miller, focusing on the forms and shapes that appear when a strong single light source was placed on a glass surfaces.  I began to focus more on the distortion that comes with looking through transparent surfaces, and began to vary my viewpoints. #'s 2-7 were constructed from an eye level point of view to capture a certain looming, omniscient presence. #'s 8, 10 and 11 were composed from a birds-eye view, which captures the powerful repetition of circular motifs of the glasses.  The focus on space was also important as I added cast shadows.  #’s 6-12 contain a careful arrangement of dark and light to create a strong presence and stark mood. My style simplified in later pieces by organizing and prioritizing the more complex value range. I was influenced by photographs of the glass (#1), and early on Photoshop helped to simplify the surface values.  From #8 on, I incorporated much more of my own markings and interpretation to compose the surfaces of my pieces. I used extremely high contrasting black and white, while the pieces are still distinguishable and highly detailed.

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