HELLO GRANT, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO COLLABORATE WITH US AND FOR TELLING US ABOUT YOUR PRACTICE. TO START, CAN YOU TELL US WHAT FIRST DREW YOU TO EXPLORE THE INTERSECTION OF REALISM, SYMBOLISM, AND PORTRAITURE IN YOUR WORK? 

Well, I think the first language we learn to speak is body language. As a child, you learn if you smile at someone, and they smile back, that you are experiencing kindness. No words need to be exchanged. So, the figure is unique in its capacity to transcend language and still communicate deep concepts with micro gestures. If you render that figure realistically, then you have the stage set to communicate some big ideas.

WHEN DEVELOPING A NEW PIECE, DO YOU BEGIN WITH THE REALIST SUBJECT OR DOES THE SYMBOLISM COME FIRST AND INFLUENCE THE EMERGENCE OF THE FIGURE?

It begins with a thought or a feeling I’d like to convey. Then, I determine what objects, color, or composition best serve that composition. At that point I can hold the image in my mind and cast the right model into the scene. I’m lucky to have a lot of captivating people in my life who are also willing to pose. Each part is equally important, whether it is selecting the right object, the right lighting, or the modeling conveying the right expression… all add up to the summation of that initial thought.

GIVEN THAT YOUR WORK WEAVES IN SYMBOLIC ELEMENTS THAT OPEN THE VIEWER’S MIND FOR DEEPER INTERPRETATION, ARE THERE PARTICULAR GENRES, TRADITIONS, OR REFERENCES OF SYMBOLISM THAT YOU FIND YOURSELF MOST DRAWN TO EXPLORING IN YOUR PRACTICE?

When I finally discovered Joseph Campbell, a lot of things finally clicked into place. I was unknowingly stumbling around in the communication of myths, but didn’t actually know there was a president or lineage. So, for a long time I was a Campbell disciple. Now, I’m finding myself moving away from overt narrative. Instead, there I’m trying to create a proximity… an acknowledgment that something deeper is always near. The viewer is invited not to decode but to stand close, to feel. The hope is that the paintings can operate in the space between myth and realism.

ARE THERE PARTICULAR ART HISTORICAL MOVEMENTS OR ARTISTS WHOSE USE OF SYMBOLISM HAS INFLUENCED YOUR WORK?

I’ve always been drawn to Caravaggio, and his ability to create works that seem to exist on a level just above our reality. The characters almost appear as if they are on stage or in a living drama. Combine that with Dutch painters like Bruegal, Baburen, Hals, Bosch; you have a hyper realism that feels cinematic and incredibly intentional. I also love Andrew Wyeth and Hopper… painters whose work has this existential quality, almost like an unseen character that hovers over the work. 

WHEN IT COMES TO CHOOSING A COLOUR PALETTE FOR A PIECE, IS THERE A FRAMEWORK WHICH IS DEPENDENT ON THE COMPOSITION OR HAVE YOU FOUND THAT THE PALETTE EMERGES THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS?

I have color preferences. I suppose it's all part of your artistic voice, but I’m drawn to colder tones and deeper shadows. Going forward though, I want to use color as a character. Specifically ​​Blue. Across cultures, it has marked the divine, the protected, and the chosen—ground from stone, drawn from plants, reserved for gods, oracles, and saints. In my current body of work, blue returns as bestowal.

YOU RECENTLY MADE A NEW PIECE FOR 4BYSIX’S VEHICLES FOR CHANGE INITIATIVE, CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THE PIECE AND THE INITIAL INSPIRATION?

I wanted to create something that felt still, yet possessing something unseen, like a held breath- a moment in which the visible and invisible briefly share the same space. I thought of that rarified space- the flow state. How it feels to be there and to hold that moment. This painting is called Passage to Elsewhere.

GIVEN THAT 4BYSIX’S FOCUS IS TO PROMOTE SUSTAINABILITY AND REPURPOSING MATERIALS WITHIN THE VISUAL ARTS, ARE CONSIDERATIONS AROUND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AN ACTIVE FACTOR IN YOUR PRACTICE?

I’m an art teacher in addition to being an artist. Any educator will tell you that we are masters of reusing and repurposing materials. Though, I could still do a much better job, or make work with more ecological intention. A large part of what drew me to the 4BYSIX project was that emphasis on sustainability.

HOW DID YOU FIND THE PROCESS OF WORKING ON THE LORRY TARPAULIN AS A METICULOUS FIGURATIVE PAINTER? DID YOU FEEL THE PLASTIC-LIKE SURFACE AFFECTED YOUR STYLE OF WORKING?

I would say that this painting is unlike my typical work. It may not be as tight, but it is perhaps  a more interesting surface. I went back and forth on whether or not I should embrace and utilize the remaining marks and abstract letters on the tarp. Now, there is just a ghost of it left, but enough still. I laid down a base of spray paint and built up acrylic over top. I was excited to experiment a little, and the final result is unique to my traditional way of making. It feels realistic but textural.

LASTLY, HOW ARE THINGS FOR YOU AND HOW IS LIFE IN THE STUDIO? ARE THERE NEW DIRECTIONS, THEMES, OR MEDIUMS YOU’RE EXCITED TO EXPLORE AS YOUR ARTISTIC JOURNEY CONTINUES?

Going forward, my work should be easily recognized by its use of a specific color.  I turned toward one of the oldest and most revered colors in the history of painting and asked it to breathe again. Historically, Blue has signified divinity, protection, and depth. From lapis lazuli ground for Renaissance Madonnas to the ritual pigments of ancient cultures, the color has carried weight far beyond aesthetics. I’m tapping into that lineage, though in my paintings the blue is less icon, and more atmosphere. Expect more blue.