Encaustic Arts Magazine Spring 2014 | Page 80

Living by the ocean in Rockaway Beach in New York City, has greatly influenced my art: from the light and tones of the open sky, beach and water, to the abandoned barracks, bunkers and ammunition sheds at an old Army base, Fort Tilden, in nearby Gateway National Park. My recent series of encaustic mixed-media works focuses primarily on this neglected and damaged architecture, as well as on elements found in nature. My creative process begins with capturing images of these buildings with my camera. This allows me to step back and see the physicality of these structures for what they are: alone, hollow, crumbling, what once was possible, full of potential. The buildings act as proxies for personal, emotional states and, in a sense, they each become a self-portrait.

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