I create both traditional and digital artwork, and I express my art in a few different styles, but they all still share one underlying theme: using color, vibrancy and symbolism to communicate the ecological interconnection of nature, and our place within that web.
I believe that color is the key to our hearts. It can influence and set our mood, and is actually used in nature for seduction. Flowers are intentionally colored with such vibrancy in order to attract and lure a certain group of insects, birds and animals called pollinators.
These creatures feed on the nectar secreted from the flower, or feed off of pollen, and end up transporting the pollen grains as they move from flower to flower. This process fertilizes the flower, so that the plant can make seeds and reproduce. It's the ultimate symbiotic relationship!
I like to think of art as the metaphorical flower, and that the message, intention, or emotional connection that the artwork invokes is a way of pollinating our minds... that then grow seeds of ideas, inspiration and connection for the viewer. In the same way that a flower might lure a bee to spread pollen, I use like to use art to spread a message. One thing that's so great about the digital age, is how easily artwork can be passed around. When the message gets spread enough, it will eventually find itself presented to the right eyes, and plant a seed into the mind of someone who can take that message and create something new from it...the next iteration of the fractal!
Though my exploration with impressionism is mostly about communicating an emotional connection to nature through color and light, and using dynamic strokes of the palette knife to convey pattern and movement, my other works involve a lot of symbolism.
The message I intend to communicate with my digital artwork is of the symbiotic merging of technology and nature in order to move towards a future that is sustainable and beneficial for all of life on earth. The thing about life, is that everything is completely interconnected. Life on earth is maintained by a special balance that is holistic, so if one thing becomes out of balance, it creates a domino effect that throws off everything. Nature thrives in balance.
Technology is moving so fast, with each decade providing what seems to be an exponential growth in terms of how we as humans can interact, what we can accomplish, and how we can innovate. We tend to get caught up in the thick of what we are creating, and it seems that we have drifted away from nature in our attempt to create better lives for ourselves. So one question I like to ask is, how can we look to nature as our teacher in order to guide us in the right direction?
We have the capability to create major advancements in technology, but nature itself is already very advanced; it has the ability to regenerate, to self replicate, to create symbiosis, and to organize itself into beautifully complex mathematical structures. We can look at the advancements of nature itself to create our own technological innovations. This is called biomimicry.
My favorite example of biomimicry is the geodesic dome designed by Buckminster Fuller, who also coined the term "synergetics" to describe the geometrical patterns in nature that influenced his creations, designs and philosophy. I think that the geodesic dome is the perfect iconic symbol for technology that looks to nature as its teacher for its design. Incorporating these kind of designs into our current and more simplistic skyscraper structures symbolizes advancement in technology that is rooted in biomimicry, which will bring our innovations for the ways we live closer to how nature behaves.
I think the best way for me to get this message across in the most direct way is through symbolic imagery. Symbols are very powerful because we tend to associate with images. The geodesic dome is just one of the many symbols I like to use to communicate this message. Some of the other symbols I use are bees, flowers, butterflies, hummingbirds, nectar, and seeds.
Bees are vital to life on earth, because much of the world's food supply is reliant on pollination from bees. I paint the bee to represent life force, and a strong ecosystem. Their hexagonal honeycomb structures are also an example of the synergetic geometry that Buckminster Fuller describes. Honey is created by bees from collecting the nectar from flowers, which I like to use to represent the overflowing abundance of nourishing sustenance that nature provides.
Hummingbirds and butterflies are also pollinators. Most plants rely on pollination to reproduce. Without pollination, plants will die off. Butterflies also help keep certain plants from propagating out of control... they keep the balance of nature in check. They eat decaying matter, ridding the environment of waste. They are a food source for many animals, and are a symbol of a healthy ecosystem.
Plants form the critical base of food chains in nearly all ecosystems. Quite frankly, without plants, we would die. They provide the fundamental basis for all life on earth, providing food and shelter, and are the basis for creating clothing and medicine. I often paint bright flowers and thriving plants as another symbol for a healthy ecosystem and the abundance of life. Gardens symbolize healthy human collaboration and interaction with our ecosystems.
When I combine all of these symbolic images together, it shows what it can look like when we merge our technologies with nature and how it behaves. I want these images to be used as symbols themselves, to be used as visual cues, passed along by the builders, engineers, people in tech, innovators, investors, farmers, architects, artists, and others who want to build a better world together. When we can envision what this future can look like, we can get that much closer to making it happen. Let's Go!!
