Almost three years ago, I moved my studio from downtown Portland to the Dana Warp Mill in Westbrook. The huge sprawling building, formerly a woolen mill, is situated next to the Saccarappa Falls on a branch of the Presumpscott River.

In the studio, the windows are large enough that there is an enormous amount of natural light, something that was useful for factory workers, and is now for a painter as well. These same tall windows are placed high enough that the river itself is not easily visible in the room. Yet I find that the presence of the river, and all the possibilities it embodies permeates the space.  

I have long been influenced by transcendentalist philosophy.  As the dictionary describes it, there are realities of a spiritual or unknowable nature that exist beyond what is present in experience. Or with a more modern, psychological interpretation, what we see at any given time has inherent in it, multiple other associations, memories, thoughts and ideas, tangible or otherwise. Curiously, in my studio, it is the closeness of the river, yet the very absence of a view of it, that stirs my imagination.  These paintings are clearly stimulated by working in this location. And they reflect my interest in multiple, interrelated levels of reality.

There are a number of devices I’ve used to explore this.  One is the use of reflection and transparency. For example, the reflection of something as transparent as a glass of water raises the question of the very nature of our perceptions. I continue to use multiple panels, especially diptychs, to reveal some of my own patterns of association. And I continue to juxtapose visual elements to suggest new realities and relationships.  In the end, I try to construct my paintings by intentionally leaving open and undefined aspects of them, in order to activate and engage the imagination of my viewers.