Sketches & Development

Preliminary sketch exploring the figure, gesture, and composition. Early ideas focused on the character and the relationship between the figure and the surrounding space before developing into the final painting.

This sketch explores the grouping of figures and their relationship to one another. The composition began as a simple arrangement and gradually developed into a more structured and symbolic image based on family connection and interaction.

The final painting builds from this early structure, using the father, daughter, and dog as recurring characters within a personal visual language.

Early sketch exploring movement, composition, and the overall energy of the scene. This piece began with a loose, expressive approach, allowing the composition to evolve through experimentation rather than a fixed plan.

Character studies helped define the figures and refine their gestures before integrating them into the final composition, building toward a more cohesive and dynamic image.

This study focuses on developing the sense of motion and atmosphere in the background. Broad, layered brushstrokes were used to explore movement and rhythm before introducing the figures, helping establish the energy that carries through the final painting.

This piece developed through a combination of drawing and collage, exploring how figures could be broken apart and restructured within the composition. The early sketch establishes the overall arrangement and spatial relationships between forms.

The collage process introduced fragmentation, layering, and surface variation—ideas drawn from both Cubist painting and mosaic work. These elements carried through into the final painting, shaping both the structure and the visual rhythm of the image.

This sketch explores a self-referential figure, using distortion and simplification to move beyond a traditional portrait. The drawing focuses on structure and gesture, allowing the figure to emerge through a process of reduction and abstraction.

Influences from modern painting and graphic design inform the composition, with attention to shape, surface, and the balance between representation and interpretation.

This sketch places my recurring characters within the visual world of The Wizard of Oz, exploring how familiar imagery can be reinterpreted through a personal lens. The drawing focuses on pose, gesture, and composition as a foundation for the final painting.

Through this process, the characters begin to take on a new context—blending memory, influence, and imagination into a unified image that carries into the final work.

This collage study explores the figure through simplified shapes, color relationships, and surface structure. The process focuses on composition and balance, using abstraction to organize the figure within the space before translating it into paint.

Through layering and reduction, the figure begins to take on a more defined and stylized form, helping establish the visual language that continues throughout the body of work.

This collage study focuses on character, gesture, and expression, using bold shapes and contrast to define the figure. The process emphasizes personality and movement, allowing the form to develop through simplification and distortion.

Through layering and refinement, the image becomes more structured and cohesive, helping define the character and reinforce the visual language that carries into the final painting.

This mosaic translates the original family imagery into cut glass and tile. The process emphasizes shape, rhythm, and color relationships before the grout is applied.

During grouting, contrast and definition are introduced, bringing the individual pieces together and reinforcing the structure of the image.

The finished mosaic builds on the original painting through material, surface, and structure. The use of glass introduces reflection and variation, creating a different visual experience from the painted image.