what is skin?.

I’ve always been drawn to the singular image.  I suppose it stems from my decades’ worth of work creating iconic imagery in motion picture poster design.  That discipline demands immediacy, emotional and creative impact.  The art must stand out from the clutter to grab attention, make a visual statement and create a desire in the viewer to take an action, namely go to the cinema.  Right now, can you visualize the red lips of The Rocky Horror Picture Show or the shark from Jaws? Those images I created are indelible.

For this exhibition, I thought about how to turn the common into the uncommon;  how to find the extraordinary in the everyday ordinary; how we see beyond the cover of a thing into its soul.  In this series, I peel away the skin of objects so that by reducing and diminishing details, the isolated singular form or figure is enhanced. I provide the essence; your mind’s eye may fill in the particulars.

By giving each object a similar layer of latex skin, we are forced to experience the very nature of a thing, be it a  woman, violin, revolver or guitar.  Using photography provides an objectivity that equalizes the subjects under their latex veneer.  Ultimately, am I looking into what makes it intrinsic?  Are there more similarities or contradictions between objects at their most basic?  By stripping away its individual skin, an inner beauty emerges that otherwise would go unnoticed.

Normally, we see each other and objects in the way that is consistent with how we expect them to appear.  In the unexpected singular views on display here, we look past our expectations to see beyond their SKIN.