Because observation lies at the root of art, no artistic evolution progresses in a straight line – mine is proof enough. My interests are broad, like my choice of medium or subject: from bronze or ceramic sculpture to oil painting on canvas to verre églomisé. There is no subject I’ve broached that I have not considered indispensable to the subsequent one, no matter how seemingly disparate – be it a philosophical idea, an emotion, a portrait, or a bird.
Today I paint mostly in reverse oil on glass (otherwise known as verre églomisé )…and mostly birds. Where I live, they are ubiquitous. Most importantly, when dead, they look no less alive. They’re a testament to the fact that life and death are degrees of each other, that color always remains, that motion is inferred in stillness. I think of them as still lifes.
My interest in reverse painting on glass began years ago with my interest in fresco painting. Egg tempera is a prerequisite to fresco painting, and as such has a long history in Eastern Europe of application to glass. Traditionally, reverse egg tempera painting on glass was the realm of icon painting in monasteries, done in a naïve medieval style. For me, reverse oil painting on glass offers an updated, much more flexible, durable, versatile, and rich means to reflecting existential experience: through a glass, vibrantly. It also has decorative applications to non-flat surfaces, such as my reverse oil painted and gilded glass bowls, plates, and tiles.
For a broader overview of my paintings, sculptures, decorative objects, decorative and faux painting, please visit my web site: