American Framework  72 3/4 x 46 3/4 - I love American history and the story of us as a country. It’s not all pretty but we are built on a solid framework and at our core, there’s a lot of good. We’re stitched together, we’re tattered in some places but we still manage to make progress and the freedom to do that is amazing. The one braided gold thread amongst the stripes expresses my hope for the future - I believe when we work together, great things can happen.  

TECHNIQUE - This was a long work in progress, a lot of trial and error. I love incorporating vintage items into my pieces; I had an old stretcher bar and wanted to feature it in something. I also wanted to illustrate chaotic connection - the way many threads of different ideas come together to create a final solution. I’d never incorporated threads in this way, never done something so three-dimensional but I felt more and more freedom as I explored the possibilities. I found the Washington portrait in a Collinsville, CT antique store this summer. As soon as I placed it on the flag, I knew the piece was finished.  

Lincoln 1909 54 x 54 and Bubblegum Lincoln 53 1/2 x 53 1/2 - While Kennedy was “my” president, I believe Lincoln was our greatest; he wanted America to be a land of opportunity and optimism for everyone.  

Lincoln 1909 – Instead of a traditional portrait, I wanted to do something more modern. I thought about using the first Lincoln penny (issued in 1909) in the piece. Outside of art and sports, my other hobby as a boy was coin collecting. My first collection was a book of Lincoln pennies - I’ve been thinking about Lincoln since I was five! The tubes are like peering into his mind and trying to see his deeper thoughts. If I could go back in time, Lincoln is one of the people I’d want to meet - what would THAT conversation be like? 

Bubblegum Lincoln – When I first thought about doing a modern Lincoln portrait, I brought a high-res image of Lincoln along with a sketchbook of ideas to my printer. I had a pretty good idea of how I wanted Lincoln 1909 to look - including a 3-D element - but it took multiple tries to get the print right. During those attempts, I saw other possibilities and asked the printer to work through some of them with me. What if we blew the image up so much that the pixels became the focus? What if we changed colors? I wanted to use color and shape to capture the viewer’s attention - they don’t immediately recognize Lincoln but, the more they look at the piece, the more they see his face.  The computer became my paintbrush as I started exploring color combinations. These colors remind me of when I’d tag along with my dad to a gas station in Cocoa where
I’d put a penny in a machine for peanuts or a wad of bubblegum. (What kid doesn’t love turning a penny into a treat?) 

JFK Portrait Series I, II, III - I was a young boy in the early 1960’s and Kennedy was the first US president i connected with, not just because of the sense of elegance he brought to our country and his stirring speeches, but also because of his direct impact on my family. My dad didn’t finish high school, but he knew enough about electrical work to join the team building out Cape Canaveral. He even got to shake JFK’s hand during a presidential visit to the space center. Kennedy was MY president and the race to the moon was all anyone on the coast could talk about. Our entire community, working together, so proud - WE were helping to put a man on the moon! 

TECHNIQUE - I used three completely different approaches – all started as quick, spontaneous studies and I built from there. 

JFK Portrait I   51 x 51  - This came together fast; I saw it in my mind before I even unrolled the canvas. I wanted to do a contemporary take - almost watercolor - with a young, vibrant, fresh feel. The drips spoke to me - my original plan was to go further but when I saw the drips drying, I put the brush down. I had always planned to mount it on board and resin it. The 50 cent piece has personal meaning; as a coin collector, I remember being mesmerized the first time I held a Kennedy half dollar in my hand. 

JFK Portrait II   49 x 49 - The grid was somewhat inspired by Bubblegum Lincoln. I didn’t want another round pixel piece, so decided to try squares. I chose mid-century modern colors carefully, square by square, to remain true to the time period but also not lose JFK’s image. I was painting an abstract and a portrait at the same time.

JFK Portrait III  51 x 51  - The moon shot took the longest and went through a lot of iterations. I really struggled with this one, for a while I thought it would not make the cut. However, I’m stubborn; it finally came together when I added something personal. As a kid, I saved my money for almost a year to buy a Saturn 5 replica model; it took FOREVER to build but I loved every minute of it. The quote is a favorite of mine: JFK encouraged us to aspire to the American dream, and to not give up even when the challenge seemed insurmountable. Sometimes art comes easy to me (the resined portrait) and sometimes it’s really hard work (this portrait.)