Biography
As far back as I can remember in my childhood, having fun almost always involved nature. Nature, and family. And as the area surrounding my home became more developed, eventually I could only experience untainted nature when visiting my grandmother, cousins, aunts and uncles in Minnesota every year.
There was a strong connection between family and nature that was more than just experiencing the outdoors together; I envied their way of life in Northern Minnesota. Being surrounded by the beauty of a pine tree forest was enough to make anyone happy to be alive. The sense of isolation from the world only emphasized the bonds between me and my family. It was a retreat from the fast-paced world of the east coast into a peaceful environment surrounded by friends and family.
At night we sat together eating, drinking, playing cards. We woke up early in the morning — a more eager sort of 'early in the morning' than one would experience on a work day. And whether we all decided to snowmobile, shoot rifles, fish, or hike, it all created the same warm feeling that I experience so rarely in the fast-paced life of New Jersey and New York.
I decided in my last trip to Minnesota that it was this experience I wanted to depict in my paintings. This oddly slow-paced and physically isolated way of life would be found intriguing to not only me, but to anyone who is accustomed to living on the east coast. Yet at the same time, it was important to capture the fulfillment that Minnesotans experience living this way. My paintings intend to capture the idiosyncrasies of my family members, while at the same time capturing the beauty of isolation in Northern Minnesota.
