Influences

MUSIC

One of the most direct types of influences on my work is the music I listen to while working. It varies widely, with different artists and styles creating a different reaction within me that can help me carry through the essence of the image I had in mind. My tastes are wildly ecclectic, but there are some standards that I tend to lean on while painting. Click on the titles to hear samples.

The Yin Selection:
"Burial" by Burial
"The Prayer Cycle" by Jonathan Elias
"It'll End in Tears" by This Mortal Coil
"Vespertine" by Bjork
"Ambient 4: On Land" by Brian Eno
"Emergence" by R. Carlos Nakai

More hyper, distracted or strung-out themes require a different selection. This music tends to be much more frenetic, percussive and usually very fast. A co-worker once came across a refrigerator magnet that said "I Love Speed" and decided it should go home with me because of my musical choices. It's now on my cabinet in the studio. Dramatic rock like the work of Porcupine Tree and Radiohead also fall into this category.

The Yang Selection:
"Of Fungi And Foe" by Les Claypool
"Fear of a Blank Planet" by Porcupine Tree
"OK Computer" by Radiohead
"Monsters & Robots" by Buckethead
"Nerve Net" by Brian Eno
"Ultravisitor" by Squarepusher
"Of Natural History" by Sleepytime Gorilla Museum



WRITINGS
Again, eclecticism rules my choices. The writings that have had the most influence over my world view and in creating the impetus for my art range from works of literature to texts in Reiki and energetic healing. Here are just a few of the most influential ones I'd recommend.

"Concerning the Spiritual in Art" by Wassily Kandinsky
"Flatland" by Edwin A. Abbott
"Illusions" by Richard Bach
"Dancing Wu Li Masters" by Gary Zukav
"Essential Reiki" by Diane Stein
"Hands of Light" by Barbara Brennan
"Huna: A Beginner's Guide" by Enid Hoffman
"Black Elk: The Sacred Ways of a Lakota" by Wallace Black Elk