The Dawn of New Style

I've been looking for a way to escape from the two dimensions of canvas, and I finally found it. The initial inspiration came from Michelangelo's Slave sculptures that are chillin in the Galleria dell Accademia. The concept of his sculptures was based on the origin of man. When looking at the seemingly half finished sculptures you can't tell if the figure is coming from the uncarved portions of stone, or returning to it. 'The soul is longing to return'.

The blue piece that I named Duality is an attempt to capture, with paint, the questions that resonated between Aristotle, Plato, St. Augustine, and Descartes...Is there such thing as a soul? Where does exist? What is the connection between consciousness and the body?...etc. This painting is a statement that says, the soul resides in free will and reason. It is our link to the divine. To me woods have always been a symbol of either abiguity and the fear of being lost, or of peace. I'm shooting for ambiguity in this case. Birds have come to represent the Spirit and free will.


This wine bar painting below lacks the same philosophical punch. I painted it to practice the technique of relieved canvas and because I like wine. I really like the way it's turned out. I feel that I've really found my style with these last few works...