Inanimate" is a small collection of large-scale works born out of my exploration in using texture as a primary medium for painting. All these works were produced in 2018, a year of decided change for me both as an artist and a person. This work is unassuming and started as nothing more than an exploration of a new medium. I decided to revisit my past interest in animal forms, but as I worked my way though each piece the collection began to take on an identity of its own. I began to think of animals in relation to the functions we, humans, have given them. I often considered the role animals play in human lives, which has inevitably lead to a general conception that animals are just another tool rather than a living being; a collection of parts to be dissected and used. 

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  By seeing animals as a tool we have disassociated any notion of "livelihood" we would otherwise see in fellow living beings. The love and devotion we show our pets is conveniently removed when the animal is serving a function such as labor, food, or game. Every year human kind distances itself further from nature, putting us at odds with the natural balance. It is only by shifting how we see ourselves in relation to the natural world - and realizing we have to be integrated with it, not dominate it - that we will obtain a sustainable state of existence. Considering other living things as such is the first step to developing the empathy needed to achieve this goal.