Size matters – to some. It matters to me – a lot.

When painting, I am very rewarded by the experience of working as close to the surface as a small canvas demands. When working such a diminutive area, there is a connection unlike that associated with working a large canvas. With the small canvas, brushstrokes are with the fingertips and wrist, while swinging the whole arm or body are required with the larger. The visual concentration a small canvas demands is laser-sharp, unlike the process of composing for a large canvas that usually occupies a broad portion of the vision field.

Besides physically, there is a huge conceptual difference between a large and small painting. The former invites the viewer into its world, whereas the small painting demands it; thus, there is a barely perceived, though undeniable power in smallness. The small canvas requires stepping into it as opposed to the large canvas which forces the viewer to step back from it. There is a call for intimacy with the smaller work that satisfies my desire to have a one-on-one connection with my audience.

Lastly, a small approach to painting allows a very focused investigation of a subject – a discrete process of exploration akin to examining a single leaf in a forrest. It suggests that the small, the unassuming, and the humble are as valuable as any other, perhaps even more so.

Little JEMs, an acronym from my initials, is a show of petite paintings of traditional subjects – portraiture, still-life and landscape –that not only enable, but encourage the viewer to step in and traverse the distance between us.

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