Rollerblade Artist - Why?
I have been exploring how to paint with my rollerblade wheels since 2010. The journey that has lead me to find new ways of making the canvas into art. I use my body as a guide. A life of competitive sport has brought me closer to the way I paint. The truth of what is revealed on the canvas produces abstract art that has emotion and color applied with speed. In this post you can see how I work physically with a large canvas linking it to abstract expressionism combining elements of art history, contemporary art experimentalism and social justice.
People who see this piece have say it looks like large trees in a burning fire. For me, it is an act of following where my body wants to take the paint. I do not have a picture in mind but only an idea. The tile is “Money, Time and Energy”. It is painted with house latex and is 15’ long and 4"‘ wide. I made this piece while trying to understand reparations. As an artist who works physically, I wanted to make a work of art that showed something digital to illustrate the finished work of art. I hung this piece displayed with my rollerblades and video at the Landmark College Gallery in 2018 when I recieved the Alumni Service Award. The money, time and energy that went into making this painting is what reflects my survival as an artist and also how I connect to my creative process. Here, I am painting while thinking about how we failed to pay citizens their pensions after they fought in our civil war; how they fought back to right those wrongs with their own money, time, and energy yet were still not paid.