About

Making art is both one of the most difficult things I do every day but also one of the only things that truly brings me peace and a sense of actualization. Each time I sit to work I am confronted with the flood of emotions that I usually ignore.

Working through a piece means being still enough to face and process what I'm feeling. I'm invariably bombarded with intensely negative thoughts and emotions, so in a way, each piece is a healing experience in itself. The finished painting is something like a physical visual record of that healing.

I often hope that someone will see my work and feel some sort of resonance with that, maybe even feel healed themselves.

Each animal is part of my symbolic language. They come to me with their own meanings which I often have to figure out through working with them. When I find myself noticing or fixating on an animal, I ask "Why? What is it they have to teach me?". It's often years before I fully understand the meaning of a piece, let alone an animal.

What is "Bazteki"?

Bazteki is many things, but most importantly it's my chosen name, what I wish to be known by. It's an avatar, an idealized self that I can slip into in order to have the freedom to overcome my own self-imposed limits.

Bazteki also serves as the name of my business, which is owned and operated by me with the part-time help of my partner.