“Painting is my response to the things I have seen or experienced, particularly in the natural world. As a kid, most of my drawings and paintings were derived from nature, especially birds. In fact, if birds and the natural world didn’t exist, I seriously wonder if I would ever have started painting in the first place. The most elemental form of my art is the field sketch; observing something wild first-hand, and recording the essences of my observations with pencil and paint. Field sketching allows me to tap into the energy that flows through the natural world, allowing that energy then to flow through me. After a while, I become absorbed into my surroundings, grow more keenly aware, and my relationship with nature deepens. My hope is that my work will encourage viewers to take a second look at the natural world, to make them want to be outside and deepen their own connections with nature.”