Artist’s Note
While working on this piece, I wanted to explore the idea of the theme “trace” and what it means to me on a personal level. I decided to make the connection between “trace” and “legacy” and tie it directly to my relationship with my family. Painting my father, brother, and myself, I felt it was a good way to express that idea of lineage. The distinct posing of each of the subjects in the drawing is meant to evoke the feeling of strength but also vulnerability in each of our gazes, but ultimately showing our relationship between father and sons. I tend to draw inspiration from life around me and my own community and environment. While a lot of my work is in black and white using pencils and other graphite tools, and I can easily find inspiration in the relationships between colors. I also appreciate good photography. I think seeing a picture that captures a beautiful moment can inspire me to do the same with my artwork.
I feel my technical applications done in this piece really echo the meaning I wanted to instill as well. I approached this work with an idea of subtlety and wanted to evoke a feeling of calmness, however juxtaposed with the feeling of strength and focus. With the light source providing well lit areas on the face and upper torso, it allowed me to show certain details and draw attention to certain features that help promote those feelings of subtlety. Not to sound cliché, but I would like to think my audience consists of anyone who appreciates art. While my subject matter tends to be a bit personal in meaning and reference material, I like for my work to invite those of all different backgrounds to stop and take a closer look. I feel anyone can relate to my work on one level or another because of its heavy inspiration and reliance on the human form, and my intent to provide a sense of narrative with each subject I paint or draw.