Snakes and Ladders

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Metaphysical Cartography 2010 - 2013

Throughout the trajectory of my work as an abstract painter, I have had a sustained interest in creating a vocabulary derived from the surfaces and and geologic textures found in the urban environment. My grandfather was an archeologist in the middle east, and having been exposed to a geologic perspective of time from a young age, this has informed the lens through which I view the North American urban environment. In my work I attempt to apply a geological and archeological perspective to my immediate environement. I take details from sidewalks, roads and construction sites and distill them into specific mark making and surface building techniques which I combine into abstract compositions that suggest a patchwork; a textile constructed of urban fabrics. The process of building surface and texture is quite active involving techniques like scraping, sratching, pouring, adding and circling with spray paint (like city workers).

In these works, the composition is meant to suggest an unstable perspective point, providing an overal sense of an aerial view while the textural details suggest a close up view of a degraded surface or a sidewalk marking for example. These earlier works are an exploration of impermanence and tap into the tradition of the memento mori, while also exploring the transformation of the physical environment at a time during which Toronto has been undergoing a period of rapid development.

Where it's been: Metaphysical Cartography Solo exhibition at Walnut Contemporary