Of Astronauts and Doughnuts

"Unrepentant"
Oil and gold leaf on panel
24x18

The second year of my MFA is done, in fact I'm weeks away from beginning my third and final year. After two years, I've realized that it takes half of the summer or more for the sting of the school year to pass enough for me to look at the work I created in that time with even a modicum of objectivity.

 Out of the twenty or so paintings I made, these are the only two that I am remotely happy with. Both paintings deal with notions of perfection and the pursuit there of. My own struggles with who I am by nature and who I feel I should be.  Both paintings are influenced by Byzantine icons, but question the format of "holiness" presented by today's society. They are both meant to be quietly contemplative, and a more than a little bit funny.

"The artist as an Astronaut"
Oil and Gold leaf on panel
14x11