Collage came first

Collage came naturally. I started creating them early on before I learned to draw. Assembling a collage is like writing a book. There’s a story that wants to be told. The challenge with collage is to find the objects that will do the telling.

I collect “stuff” that I live with for years before they come into play. Words punctuate the piece. I’ve been influenced by Joseph Cornell, Braque, and Picasso. My first show, September 1985, was at the now Chester Gallery, Chester, CT. The most recent show, November 2009, was also at the Chester Gallery. In between, I’ve shown In Paris, Normandie, and New York.

Illustration came later

The fear of perfection never let me take an art class or attempt to put pen to paper and draw. In 7th grade, I stood before an enormous drawing table, took one look at the blank sheet of paper and fled. I’ve not entered an art class since. With time and an opportunity, I now love pen and ink and watercolor. I became friends with them while sitting in Parisian cafes drinking way too much caffeine. I came to see that drawing a sketch even badly, can quickly synthesize both the experience and the emotions. Once drawn the experience and place of an illustration is forever engrained in the memory bank. There are now over 10,00 drawings in the bank.