1. BODY MEDIUM*…what is that?
BODY MEDIUM is a dance-painting technique that I coined and developed where I use my body as a painting tool, movement as the strokes and the canvas as a stage. I refer to this technique as “immersive action painting” because I consider myself an extension of the canvas and as I paint, I become immersed in the artwork. The work is interdisciplinary as each piece involves performance art, visual art, music, film, and fashion. I typically add a theatrical or metaphorical premise to each piece using curated colors, movement qualities, lighting, and music to push along the storyline. The work is part meditation, part performance and part ritual and is based on the ideas of flow, authenticity, bravery and the expression of the creative spirit.
2. What is your relationship with painting? Did anyone inspire you?
I have been painting and dancing separately since I can remember. My father was a craftsman and had a studio in our basement so I watched him work with wood and paints from a very young age. Professionally, I’m inspired by the lineage of action painters who used movement to paint like Jackson Pollock, Kazu Shiraga, Lee Krasner, and Joan Mitchell. Every time I’m in a museum, I find myself drawn to abstract expressionist works that mimic movement rather than a person or object.
3. Did you go to a performing arts school?
From age three through high school, I took art classes in school but my dance education was extracurricular. By high school, I was dancing 16-18 hours a week and was in three dance companies so most of my time outside of school was taken up by dance. I continued my performance art education in college at The George Washington University where I majored in dance.
4. Where are you from originally?
Pound Ridge, NY. Westchester County.
5. Can you talk to us about your art commission process?
The BODY MEDIUM commission process is unique because it is a collaboration between artist and commissioner. We first discuss logistics like size, color and style and then speak about intention and what they want the piece to represent. The artwork can then be created in studio or live for an event such as a wedding, conference or celebration and then the painting acts as the imprint of a memory.
6. What is your favorite performance you've done and why?
Two performances come to mind, one is called Journey and was my first full-length conceptual performance piece made on a 50ft canvas in collaboration with musician and composer Tasso Zapanti. Journey is about the story of an idea moving through the stages of the creative cycle from the perspective of an artist, highlighting the emotional range it takes to bring a vision to life.
The other most memorable performance was the one I took to Art Basel in Miami in 2021. I was Scope Art Fair’s chosen artist in residence to exhibit and perform at Loews Hotel Miami and performed in collaboration with musicians Mehmet Ayden and Joshua Ryan.
7. Who inspires you as an artist? Is there certain music that gets you into the headspace?
My performance art is inspired mostly by Isadora Duncan and Martha Graham techniques. These iconic women were both considered mothers of modern dance and incorporated spirituality, storytelling, and theatrics into their choreography.
Musically, many genres inspire me, mostly modern classical, jazz and anything that speaks to my creative spirit (my body knows as soon as I hear it). However, since I’ve trained in over a dozen dance disciplines, I can perform to and embody most any genre and each genre yields a different kind of painting so it’s been fun exploring collaborations of all kinds.
8. Tell us about your newest series, Kinetic Flow.
Kinetic Flow is my new movement-based minimalist linework series. The underlying themes of flow and the movement of energy through time and space are drivers in both series. In Kinetic Flow, it’s expressed by a single line and the peaks, valleys and complexities of each line visually symbolize the tonal qualities of music and the journey of life itself.
9. Do you have any upcoming shows or performances?
Yes, my next solo show, Fearless, is going up in March in Box Factory Gallery in Ridgewood, NY. The opening event and performance will be on March 14th, 2024. In addition to that, I’m piecing together a monthly performance series featuring different musicians in various locations in NYC. You can find more information about the series on my website.
"The work is part meditation, part performance and part ritual and is based on the ideas of flow..."