“I am attempting to extend the painting process beyond the canvass into digital and print mediums in a creative and direct manner. Rather then using digital technology to simply reproduce painted works, I am seeking to use it to expand the perceptual experience of the painting directly as a continuation of its essential nature. The paintings themselves arise out of a direct contact with the painting medium which I have termed “Direct Expressionism”. Here is a working definition:
Direct Expression originates from the direct perceptual contact of any medium. Out of this contact, the 'art' process extends infinitely and effortlessly, and is unbounded by abstract 'ideas' or subtle emotional responses. The essence of the works lies in their potential to penetrate the observer by challenging his or her limited perspectives of observation. The unconditioned and free use of the medium brings out its transformative potential as it confronts our most basic and habitual reality constructing processes. By eliciting a direct awareness of these limited realms of experience, the works aim to skillfully lead one away from the known, into communion with the immeasurable.
This way of “direct expression” need not be limited to the canvass, but can proceed through the infinite space of digital technology, expanding the implicate nature of the painting into an unlimited array of perspectives. For instance, I use a digital camera to capture close up views of the abstract paintings as soon as they are painted, while they are still wet. I capture different views from many different angles which when looked at on a screen or print, forces the observer to engage a perspective of the painting of which he normally would not been able or inclined to observe. These digital pictures are then manipulated with a variety of digital programs creating new images that arise out of the essential nature of the painting, thus explicating the painting process into unknown realms of creativity and experience.
The visual works stem from years of electronic music composition. The music reflects a variety of direct interactions with digital and analogue sound producing interfaces and combines various musical genres. Like the paintings, the tracks are layered, multidimensional, and minimalisitc. Samples that were recorded across vast distances of time and space are gathered together and reduced into a singularity of present awareness, similar to the convergence of various pigments on a canvas.
The vision is to engage the realm of Pure Painting as foreseen by Wassily Kandinsky. He predicted an Art that fluidly mixed sound and light. Beginning attempts at this have been made through “experiential painting” projects in which the painting process emerges together with abstract electronic music. These projects will continually seek ways to redefine and expand the mutual communication and direct experience of painting and sound through animation and real time interaction.”
