"Records of Ashtabula"

The purpose of this exhibit is to combine the history and beauty of my hometown of Ashtabula County with art history by using direct inspiration and references from famed artists with very recognizable styles who have influenced the world of visual arts. I tasked myself with paying homage to abstract cubist artists like Pablo Picasso, surrealist artists like Salvador Dalí and René Magritte, impressionists like Claude Monet and Paul Cézanne, illustrators such as Normal Rockwell and Bruce McCall, folk artists such as Grandma Moses and Maud Lewis, and many more. For each piece in this series, I studied the different historic landmarks of Ashtabula County along with multiple artists and artworks to decide how I would like to depict each location. My depictions were based on the era represented, the composition of buildings, architecture, and landscaping, or if there were direct references that were portrayed within the art. Some paintings are direct replicas with an Ashtabula twist, some are paintings influenced by a particular artist's style, and some are created due to the similarities between the famous artwork and the subject matter.

Over the years, I have had multiple solo exhibits and have participated in many community exhibits throughout and around Ashtabula County. I have done portraiture exhibits, abstract exhibits, surrealism displays, animal portraiture, landscapes, and many more. However, I have never done an Ashtabula themed exhibit or a full exhibit inspired by famous artists and artworks so I thought this would be a perfect series to combine these two ideas. This made me stretch out of my comfort zone to work in styles I don’t normally use within my art. This series pushed me as an artist to evaluate a composition differently and take different approaches to creating. 

I chose to paint this series on recycled vinyl records because I wanted to do something outside of the norm; something original, unique, and interesting, that each painting can only be one of a kind without being reproduced. The idea of a vinyl record represents history in itself; vintage yet timeless, fitting my theme of both Ashtabula history and art history.