I select poems, in general, very carefully. In addition to being a visual artist I have had an interest in creative writing for years. I appreciate clarity, brevity, and elegance. The poem I chose from the other strong submissions had all three. I also appreciate that this poem felt like being bathed in light. It is a visual poem in the best sense.

Creating art in Central New York has been a journey of unexpected twists and turns that often occur. I draw strength from that. This is an environment where I draw inspiration from almost anything: the culture, the people, the highs and lows, the streets, buildings, and folds of green. My aspiration as an artist and as a person is to maintain a close connection to the community that made me the person I am.

I am a transplant from Toledo, Ohio… my birthplace. But the CNY region has been my home for over 30 years. Over these decades, I have literally walked hundreds of miles throughout the Town of Clay, Liverpool and Syracuse. My numerous experiences in this adopted land have inspired me visually. I use a catalog of internalized memories and images to help create my illustrations. During these past 15 years, I have observed multitudes of people around me. I have seen the highs and lows (and everything in between) of their public lives.

In Syracuse I have traveled many times along the Onondaga Creek Walk and the area surrounding it. When I read this efficient haiku that evoked the beauty of the fall season and the passion of two people in love, the idea of my eventual illustration bloomed inside my head. Once I took a photograph at dusk in the Franklin Square area, the poster design came together quickly. I wanted to use the shape of an imagined couple to frame the scene via the use of negative space. Once the first draft was completed, it all felt like it was meant to be. Simultaneously as the sun begins to set, the dawn of young love begins.