A painting begins long before I put my brush to canvas.  Images and ideas float around and take shape in my sketch book in the form of notes and drawings.  Some notes from my current sketchbook:

Discreet Math  :  Rational Numbers

collect vintage ashtrays and

know how to breakdown a rife blindfolded

in 5 seconds or less

how to draw braids

twos and sevens

embrace my natural proclivities

Do Not Attack What Seems Ridiculous

lull lullen lollen

a pack of smokes a lottery ticket and two scratchers

Xiao San

Why did you let her sleep with broken bones inside her?

A transmutation of materials and ideas occurs during painting, facilitated by working and re-working the surfaces.  Most paintings in this show have multiple finished images lurking underneath the finished image. 

I prefer to paint on paper.  One of my favorite ways to start painting is to cut four pieces of paper into 4 feet x 4 squares. I stack two pieces of paper on top and two on the bottom to make an 8 x 8 foot square unit.  As I work, the papers get shuffled around and turned upside down.  As they develop, I pull them apart and finish them individually.