It is said that the hardest task for an artist is to define one's self as an artist _ the ability to explain one's art is a passionate pitfall. The purpose of any piece may be invisible at the time of creation or it may be a scream of desperation. It may be hidden or intrinsically clear to the viewer. Sometimes so personal _ there are no words, other times, deliciously apparent.

Often times I imagine my pieces as children _ each one a definitive chunk of myself. Personal yet posed to go out in the world to expand a thought or better yet, an emotion. To evoke another's feelings from my work would be my greatest achievement.

Working in wood is formidable. It is the "aliveness" of the wood that translates back to me. It has warmth and a certain life form that seems to live on. The wood guides me through each curve and depth. It tells me it's name and before I am finished, it has let me touch it's soul. It is a terrifying pleasure to work in wood.

I am fascinated by the synchronicity of timing. When I was working on one piece, 9/11 happened. The piece was unto itself a before, during and after thought of that happening but the idea for that piece was conceived long ago. When the time became right, the piece, Men of Dreams, was created.

Another piece, Delilah, was being done before and during a time of life crisis. I almost died while working on this form. That was the first time I touched the "soul" of a piece.

Each piece (each child) has a story and a reason for existing and I am sure the right person will find their messenger in time.

To impart my concepts of man upon a surface is to leave my fingerprint in time. From the mind to the hand to the form - it is personal because it is most about the passion I can convey.