Laguna College of Art + Design

Steven Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow, in The Grand Design, coined the term

“model-dependent realism”, claiming that everything we know about reality is from

observations based on models. They believe that different world picture models prove to be

equally valid, and the “true” nature of reality is impossible to pinpoint. My paintings are

models of the universe that I know through experience; experiments using scientific

observation combined with intuition.

I’ve coined the terms “paradoxical realism” and “magical absurdism” to define what I

do. A visual paradox happens when logical perspective collapses in on itself, illustrating

reality from multiple points of view at the same time. Absurdity adds a bit of humor to my

concepts; makes them more entertaining and easier to digest. Viewers should have fun with

my work; but, at the same time, I want to have a scientific basis for what I do. Like Hawking,

I’m interested in showing that several models of reality can be equality valid, even as they

contradict each other.