I use the convention of portrait painting as a vehicle to explore ideas about paint and abstraction, perception and meaning. The head becomes a place to pile paint. We can always find a face in the clouds, in a spot on the floor, in anything. The head becomes an arena in which I can experiment freely – color next to color, style next to style.

I like the idea of somebody wearing several hats at once, like a hat salesman. There is something about having a whole bunch of things piled up on top of your head. You see this also in some African masks and headdresses, where there is a wearer and a mask and often a spirit or some scene on top.

In portrait painting there is a connection, a rapport between viewer and painting. The painting stares at you and you stare back at it. It is an intimate exchange – even love? There is a magic in making inanimate material animate, to appear to have consciousness. I don’t know who these people are who appear in my paintings before I begin, but as I work their personality emerges, they become alive, and they stare back at me as I work. … Read More