2020 ARTIST STATEMENT
2020 was the first full year of my retirement. In March, we were struck by a worldwide pandemic, the first in my lifetime. The world was locked down for over a year, and those first few months left me scrambling to secure all of my digital files and duplicate them on multiple drives. The 30 potential years ahead of me were now 90 days. I used every minute of the time to ensure my kids had something to dig into: their past. By May, the pandemic was in full swing, and we had bought a small 21-foot RV van. To- gether, Diane and I enjoyed a week or so driving to Colorado. Once there, we helped our son move into a new home. Meanwhile, back home, our primary residence was flooded. I stayed in Colorado, helping our son get situated while my wife went home to deal with a flood. I expected to stay at least five months. During that time, I built a music room with 20 original paintings that double as sound treatment; a 90-foot concrete retention wall with a notch cut into the hill for a fire pit; a new yard; 2 large oil paintings; and a ceramic sculpture. It was a very productive time. I love Colorado and the whole region. The van opened up many possibilities for my art and sense of adventure. I took the van into the mountains of Colorado, through the deserts of Utah, and up to the border with Idaho, finally stopping for a few nights at a Bear Lake RV center. There, I felt the exquisite peace of the cool mountain air while I slept warmly under the covers. This was the first time in years I could let go and feel the joy of living. I was finally feeling retired. What I ended up creating was unexpected and remarkable. I started a new style of highly saturated, simplified land studies using a combination of watercolor pencils, guache, and the iPad Pro.
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