My artistic style is an awkward mix (or mess, depending on how you look at it). It began in high school with art classes and my first sketchbooks. I got some decent exposure to different art forms through my classes, eventually settling on ceramics and pottery. Back then, anger was the driving force in my art. I can remember screaming faces in my sketchbooks and a rather large, heavy ceramic head/skull with blue glaze dripping down the face like blood.
Later in college, I attempted a BFA with an emphasis on ceramics. I lasted about 2 years or so and ended up dropping out when life got in the way. Despite obvious disappointment I still benefited from the experience. I developed my drawing and composition technique and learned a bit about color. I also developed a reasonable level of skill in ceramics and pottery towards the end. Style-wise, I don't really feel like I developed much in college. Learning techniques and exposure to different mediums was the main emphasis. Ultimately, I'm sure my style was greatly influenced through my college experience but not much on a very memorable or conscious level.
It wasn't until my 30's that I started drawing again. Ceramics was out of the question, considering my income level and resulting physical space constraints (honestly, I also think I still had some hurt feelings wrapped up in ceramics and pottery, considering how my college experience went). But I was drawing more and more. When I got my hands on some new sketchbooks and some new Sharpie markers the resulting creative burst was exciting and interesting on a personal level. Some of the fucked up shit that came from the Sharpie craze was a real eye-opener for me in some ways. The vivid morbidity mixed with sexual themes that surfaced during this phase still concerns and interests me even today.
Now in my 40's, I've finally decided to go public with my art. Here I'm attempting to both share and make sense of my life as an artist. I'm obviously not the most well-rounded or accomplished of artists. I've spent big chunks of my adult life not even pursuing my art or maintaining my technique. I simply lack discipline in that regard. In some ways I'm relearning a lot of things. In the wake of the Sharpie craze my style, I find, is in a state of both flux and development. Since starting this blog I also find it interesting to see what effect the self-consciousness caused by presenting my works to the public is having on the style and content of my art. All in all, I'm going through a real learning experience at present. Hopefully, all of this chaos will swirl around nicely and coalesce into something greater than it was before.
