The Piece That Changed It All

Morning on the Mississippi

I first did this piece...as a big painting of a rose....probably around 2005 and it sat in the garage till I finally decided to take another look at it. What then emerged was one of the first pieces to take on this new "style" that my work has come to embrace. At the time, it was a pretty different piece for me...one that really didn't resemble my style, my interest, or any of the work I was doing at the time...it really stood out as a good piece...but also as a piece that really didn't fit in.

Another piece I did in the same time frame

Because of that, I think it's stayed in my head as one of my favorites, but has never really been looked upon as a piece that really symbolized my work. It's never been exhibited as it is and really, the only people to see it have been guests of my house.

Looking back now, however, I'm pretty confident that this may have been a "viola" moment in my work. While it may not have flipped a switch directly and changed my work completely or quickly, I remember feeling like a seed had been laid...when I finished the piece, I had hit something new, something different. I didn't latch on immediately, I didn't change my approach, but I think it started the move...