I have been painting for the last 5 years and feel that I have a very interesting and different way at looking at our world. Color, texture and depth are my impetus for creating scenes for my paintings. I really enjoy putting very ordinary people in very odd or uncomfortable situations. I have always been an avid museum and gallery watcher. Just watching people doing their everyday chores inspires me to show them doing work that could be way out of their realm. Religion also is a great influence. I carefully craft figures in groups of 12, 13 or 5. Taking care of our garden showed me that most flowers are 5 petals. And of course 12 is for the guests at the Last Supper with a 13th thrown in to off balance the thought.

I would hope that people will be very interested in what I paint and come to their own conclusion. I never thought that I would ever have time to paint, let alone show my paintings to the public. I was a hairdresser in New York before I moved to Jacksonville and had a very busy, full and creative life. After a botched surgery I was forced to stop hairdressing and sold my business. Being confined to bed and our home I started to draw and paint and decided that it really made me very happy and optimistic about my future.

I paint on paper with bright metal acrylic paint that is so brilliant in color that I keep adding more and more characters, filling the entire sheet. When the paint dries after many coats it is virtually waterproof and indestructible. Some of the images are shocking and provocative. Good! They aren’t for everyone but what is?

I hope to have a second career as a self taught artist. I learn as I go and constantly strive to up my work and would like to do larger more complex, mind bending pieces.

I digitally photograph the canvas as I fill it with color and make a moving photo show with music and changing backgrounds. I am currently working on a website StevenBogarat.com for the world to see.

 

Artist Steven Bogarat