The Artist Statement...

I view our world as a kaleidoscopic network of functions or mechanisms constantly redirecting energy in a conspiracy of recombinant self-exploration. A world ruled by physics while infused with imagination and emotion. A world plagued by greed and inequality yet simultaneously teeming with selflessness and love. It is frustratingly paradoxical but equally intellectually and emotionally intoxicating. This is the balance or cosmic order, within which we choose our way. In this world of chaos and order, the artist is the vehicle for memory and meaning through cultural interpretation and sensory titillation.
Since childhood, my mind has been bombarded by the ever-increasing flood of information and technology associated with our modern society. At an early age I found solace in illustrating the array of superheroes and characters from the cartoons, comic books, and video games with which I spent much time. Originally, I had dreamed of an artistic career in the comic book industry yet, the more knowledge my growing brain aquired, the greater my curiosity became: Eventually eclipsing my boyhood hopes of depicting what -at that point- seemed like trivial superheroic escapades. Before I knew it, I was engaged in a quest for answers to the basic query of truth regarding the intimate workings of -and my creative place within- our universe.
The result is a creative individual with a unique yet, well-educated world view who draws inspiration from an eclectic pool of subjects and styles ranging from tribalism to technology, mysticism to physics, mandalas to masterworks, and from the abstract to the surreal. However, I primarily identify with the surrealist approach. When one looks at the surrealist piece, he/she is compelled to decipher the curious associations of imagery, as there is an imposing intimation of deeper meaning contained within those associations. It's like an inside joke or secret, which one can figure out if he/she pays close enough attention. This is the intrinsic quality I attempt to emulate in my creative process. I hope the result of this attempt will engage the viewer in a more substantial discourse or exchange.
Like many of us, my overall objective is to explore our human origins in an attempt to more fully understand our present civilization's precarious situation, and then express my thoughts and emotions through artistic means. I've often thought if I had not decided to pursue the way of the artist, I would now be a scientist. This inclination is evinced in my work which itself is infused with references to energy systems, cosmological mechanisms, organismic and technological envelopes, and socio-ecological sustainability: all orchestrated with a sense of mathematical discipline.
In my work I attempt to communicate with the viewer concerns over what I perceive of as an utterly fantastic, yet also deeply troubled collective human psyche. Utilizing both discreet and overt symbols, I engineer most overall structures to read like a pictograph or heiroglyph; hopefully engaging the viewer not only aesthetically, but intellectually as well.

Contrary to popular expectation formed by the measure of my "psychedelic" art, I'm not a superstitious, new-age, or spiritual-type person. I strive to be a science-minded rational being who does not indulge in supernatural explanations for natural phenomena or attempt to externalize responsibility. That's not to say I'm without fascination, awe, or reverence. I revel in the deep mysteries of life in this universe and do my best to interpret this dynamic and paradoxical world guided by a rational mind, enriched by scientific paradigms, and emboldened by a child-like sense of both wonder and imagination. While I revere the pursuit of empirical truth, I understand there are still many concepts and truths currently outside the collective human grasp. Even so, I do not find the need to ascribe supernatural causation to their mystery. As touched upon in my explanation above and to further illuminate my artistic approach, despite being of rational mind, since childhood I have been fascinated both by the academic subjects of Astronomy/Astrophysics, Physiology, Chemistry, History, Anthropology, etc., and by fringe subjects like UFOs, cryptozoology, ASC (altered states of consciousness), Shamanism, conspiracies, forbidden archaeology, and the paranormal potential of biological systems. I have watched, rented, purchased, or streamed virtually every available UFO video in existence as well as read a number of books on all these fringe subjects. My modest library includes virtually no fiction save a few books by Phillip K Dick and maybe Robert Anton Wilson's Illuminatus Trilogy, and randomly interpolates books by Terence Mckenna, Richard Dawkins, or Howard Zinn with books by Graham Hancock, Zechariah Sitchen, or Jim Marrs. So, despite being a rational scientifically-minded person, I entertain all sorts of ideas and theories regarding the nature and history of our shared reality. These ideas are all evaluated and either propagated or rejected based on an assessment of possibility and probability. Ultimately I do not believe in much outside the widely accepted common sense scientific laws of physics and biological evolution, but I still allow for the possibility of things such as DMT entities in alternate dimensions, interplanetary/interdimensional extraterrestrial visitation, clairvoyance, ancient aliens, time travel, quantum branching, superstring membranes, and the like. I pride myself on keeping my interpretation system flexible and my mind open to new information. With this flexible interpretation system, I proceed to take in novel stimuli and interpret said novelty through conscious application or projection of subject matter and technique into mediums visual, literary, and musical. While my visual art is predominantly natural in subject and apolitical in nature, my musical art has become the primary outlet for a majority of my socio-political and philosophical discourse. I find the word to be a powerful tool which condenses and transmits far more explicit information under much greater control than is obtainable through purely visual means. When in concert with rhythm and melody, the word becomes quite the formidable method with which to communicate precise concepts and reference points. So, while my visual works often remain fanciful and largely symbolic, my musical recordings border on the pornographic as I am essentially overloading the discourse with explicit information.
Whatever it is I do, it seems I do it -as do most meaningful artists- primarily for self-indulgent reasons, but also because I am strangely compelled. However, I like to think the fact I choose not to consider my self as truly separate from the universe and the rest of humanity effectively converts my motivation from selfishness to selflessness. Levity aside, as for the compulsion, it may very well be a subconscious response to our lack of control in this elegantly chaotic universe.
There are no grants, trust funds, or any sort of financial support for my work. I do everything on a limited working-man's budget (in fact, I'm currently unemployed), all projects are built from scratch, and everything is done in-house. Though cliché and idealistic, I create these projects solely for me and my consciously contrived sense of importance. Aside from my website and ubiquitous web presence, I don't really market my work, I don't pester galleries to carry my work, I don't seek out labels to produce my albums, and I basically make all my songs available for free download at one site or another. Still, even without notoriety and profit from my work, I manage to survive in this antiquated system of patriarchal dominance, political dysfunction, and capitalist exploitation fabricating creative works which will hopefully entertain, enlighten, and even emancipate the human intellect for years to come.

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