I consider myself an artistic bastard, a painter-photographer hybrid who views neither medium from a purist perspective. I believe that no genre of art can exist in isolation and that art, like heredity, is strengthened by diversity. Painting and photography are a natural pair in my mind and my aesthetic embraces both. The camera has become a filter, and the resulting photographs act as thumbnails from which I create my paintings. I take advantage of the versatility, speed, and perceptual variance that photography provides. I then augment the intensity of my photographs with the spontaneity and eloquence of the human touch. The goal of this process is to create paintings that emphasize the unnatural qualities of the photographic image. I aim to improve upon my photographs by creating paintings infused with emotion and an almost hallucinogenic beauty. In the end, however, my work is about a love of visual exploration, and hopefully that needs no introduction to be appreciated on an aesthetic and intellectual level.