A Fractal Sublime
My paintings are aerial landscapes derived from altered topographical maps and digitally manipulated satellite images. I use color, bleached-out light and fractal patterns to simulate atmospheric disturbances as seen from a satellite. I'm interested in the self–similarity that occurs when fractal patterns are magnified, like when a grain of sand appears to have a similar contour as a coastline of a continent. I combine these ambiguous scales with digital effects and enhanced color manipulated on the computer. To me this magnified view of nature creates a sense of isolation; the computer turns satellite images into a world of fantasy and exaggeration. I hide the normal thickness and texture of paint and collaged roads under layers of mediums and varnish, resulting in a smooth finish that further separates the viewer from the painting's surface.
I see my paintings in the tradition of American nineteenth century luminist landscape painters who explored the sublime, the feeling of rapture or awe caused by the beauty and terror of nature. In my paintings I use luminist techniques such as magnified scale, dramatic lighting, deep space, and precarious perspective. But while the luminists sought out the sublime in nature, I find the sublime in technology. I interpret the simulated atmospheric disturbances as technology gone awry, a world where catastrophe and beauty meet, where global climate changes are visualized, and where technology has tragically isolated, subjugated and compromised nature, creating a fractal sublime.