Media 160 post #1 - Artist's Statement

I have always been an outsider on multiple levels, be it ethnically, culturally, or mentally. Therefore, I try to make work that reflects that outsider sensibility, as well as comment on what is considered “mainstream.” In fact, my work does not have to have a description. As an artist of the period in which I live in, I have no barriers. My work can be anything I want it to be, and it can then be shared by me, and distributed globally. I will say, however, that I like to make work that is weird, dark, cynical, quirky, funny, colorful, or a combination of two or more of those adjectives. I am influenced by others like me who used their work to lash out against social norms and perceptions of what was considered “good” art. I am influenced by punk rock, alternative rock, new wave music, experimental and underground films, and underground comics. I am also inspired by the medium of moving images and how moving images manifest themselves based on the social and cultural beliefs of their audience, particularly in places and times of extreme censorship or conformity. I primarily work in the area of filmmaking and video production, often with a focus on the nature of moving images and found material. I enjoy culling portions of the vast ocean of easily-accessible video and turning them into collages that range from insightful to incomprehensible. Whether or not you like my work is not of interest to me. It’s still there, regardless of what you think. My work does not conform, it just exists.