In my studio practice preparation involves much deliberation and a lot of pushing ideas around in my head. Then fragments of initial ideas are moved around on a flat surface. Drawings come into this process but rarely feature as finished work. Ideas come from a wide variety of sources. I sometimes work out developed ideas as small paper studies and then extend them into larger pieces. My paintings are a personal response and involve memory and imagination. Compositions are often sparse and asymmetrical and the idea of simplicity and an absence of elaboration or decoration appeals. I am interested in the pause or the empty space and that which is not included. Structure and composition act as an important scaffold from which a painting might evolve. I work intuitively when developing an idea and am constantly re-evaluating by removing paint and revealing underlying surfaces, by letting chance play a role and by changing the emphasis of a painting if I think it improves the overall balance. I enjoy working in series. In my current figure work, I am attempting to portray a single moment in a heightened experience where the figure is suspended and caught in total absorption or \’Samadhi \’the flow state, a state of oneness, of being in the moment. I am exploring the tensions between clarity and ambiguity, observation and abstraction. I feel that I am straddling a fine line, balanced between literal and suggestive interpretation.