My art is my life both literally and physically. I am no longer sure where the paint ends and life begins or vice versa. I am for the most part a figurative painter. I particularly have a penchant for painting the unknown, the parts of life and painting that simply refuse to be defined. I paint figures that embody no particular persona, but are comprised of bits, pieces and facets of those who have in some way marked my journey for either good or bad. The amalgamated resulting figure is both familiar, strange, and often enigmatic. The figure for the most part in my work is a two dimensional shape that integrates into and out of the background shapes. It is a pigmented push and pull of visual weight that seems to give the painting life without giving either a portrait or caricature of anyone. I most often prefer my forms to remain faceless, diffused and dimly lit, in an effort to keep them from being cornered and cajoled into representing a certain person or identifiable figure; one that might give them a specific point of reference and alienate them in some way. I choose to employ loose open ended narratives in my work, I want to leave options for the viewer. Animals are often incorporated into my paintings . Animals have always been a constant in my life and have always grounded me in their honesty and integrity. Most of the valuable lessons in my life have been shown to me through animals and nature, therefore they both play prominent places in my work and in my life.
My greatest fear is to create work that is boring or too familiar, I want to push both the figure and the narrative out as far as possible without losing the dynamic of good design. We all in individual ways experience life with a similarity that is often not brought to the forefront and given credence. Painting the mundane and often ordinary thoughts and moments of life, illuminates a common linkage and metaphorically forms a bond between the artist and the viewer.
Cathy Hegman