Though I’ve enjoyed doing paintings of trains, cars, and architectural structures, I moved toward a more satisfying process of art making. My current areas of interest include: figurative paintings with dramatic lighting; combining 2D and 3D elements in my projects; creating art that explores a deeping conceptual content. I am especially interested in bringing the viewer into the painting itself. I have found that working with human emotional responses are of particular focus and I am discovering many subjects that may be a part of my future work. This new focus allows me to approach my work from a different perspective. I’ve been studying these artists and writers: Vincent Van Gogh, George Bellows, Edward Hopper, David Hockney, Lucian Freud, Plato, Cindy Zerm. I imagine my work as the beginning of the conversation that the viewer carries forward. This also opens up many new paths to follow and the opportunity to experiment with new and varied materials to add to my work. I came to MassArt to make my future happen in two ways: to become a stronger artist and to become a teacher of college art students. Both are now possible. I may continue this forward by contacting a “community” of artists I enjoy working with to share critiques and the arts as a profession.