I like to use art as an expression of what I know about a subject. I want to share my experiences and impressions, my feelings and beliefs with the viewer. I use the act of painting itself to process my understanding of a subject matter. When I began this painting, I was just beginning my journey in learning more about Kenya. I quickly began to process the fact the what I truly knew about Kenya was little more than a flash of thinking, a stereotyped script of images, a nation's flag, and a set of colors. I looked heavily to the red, white, green, and black flag of Kenya. I thought about the shield that lies in the center of the flag and wondered what it truly represented for the people of Kenya. I had no real knowledge to lead my painting, and struggled heavily through the process. I carried only the belief that Kenya must be as complex as nation- a people-a land as any.
It was at this acceptance of my ignorance that I began to see the traditional shield, represented in parts and wholes, and various shapes and sizes lying upon a complex background. Texture, line and shape would dominate the canvas to represent what was (and is) only instinctual knowledge to me. The longer I painted, the more comfortable I became with the unknown. The underlying feeling of the painting is found in the unbegun nature of my journey. The feeling lies in the hope that I will learn so much more about the nation-the people-the land of Kenya when I visit it's space. I think of this as only a "before" painting and I look forward with hope to what the image of "after" will bring to me. I will be in Kenya such a short time, but feel the effect of this journey will last a lifetime.
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