This is My Exit

My favorite paintings are those that represent a burning desire–and this isn’t limited to the painting titled Burning Desire. The first was Where the Wild Things Are, in 2021. My native garden had just begun when a language-gap-fueled misunderstanding led to its entirety being mowed over. I coped with the loss as I painted the yearning: a native meadow of goldenrod, ironweed and joe pye weed abundant with pollinators.

That painting was the first work where I stepped back and thought: “I made this? I might be on to something.”

I often make paintings I like, but I was ready to make one I loved when I set out to make This is My Exit. The yearning that undercurrents this work is to turn inward and work on my art career. The Hi-Ho Motel is a Fairfield staple: iconic Americana imagery that houses visitors and a lovely Spanish tapas restaurant, Barcelona. Yet Hi-Ho, as an exclamation, has an inherent meaning and a clear follow up: “…it’s off to work we go.”

The winding road represents an acknowledgement of the twisted journey that lies ahead & the car’s review mirror reflects a current sense of place and an opportunity to look back on where one came from, though the future is in focus.

“This is my Exit” is both metaphorical and literal. The composition is a slice of life from a moment when I exited the Merritt Parkway, yes. But it also represents that putting in the work to pursue my art goals will put an end to the general malaise that sprouts from not living one’s purpose.