When I started composing narratives of figures in spaces with my series, "Pan in Arcadia" (2004), I noticed that placing a figure in the landscape motivated me to give greater attention to developing a believable space with a sense of atmosphere. It was like I was constructing a terrarium so that the painted life had room to exist within the space, rather than in front of it—a quality Flemish painters call "houding."
In these paintings, I strive for total envelopment and integration of figures within a space. I try to capture the feeling of awe humans can experience from the sense that we are only a small aspect of a full environment. For me, this concept is a way to confront life struggles and challenging emotions. My hope is that the series will inspire the viewer to contemplate their own connection to planetary nature.
