I paint because I love to paint. I particularly remember being in elementary school, my mom giving me some paper, and cheap watercolors in plastic tubes. I sat down with my brush and painted a cornucopia for Thanksgiving, because I liked the idea of fruits and vegetables. When I was done, I proudly showed it to her. She took one look and said, “I think you’d like oils better.” Not knowing exactly what to do, I had used every single color straight from the tube, without a drop of water mixed in. She turned out to be right about oil.

            Each small act of creation is a piece of myself, laid out where I can see it. I want to create work that I love, that expresses to me who I am, and in the process communicates that to the viewers. I still consider myself a student artist. As such, I have mostly been in a problem-solving situation: given the assignment and the materials, what can I create?