The Art of David Titterington :: home :: artwork :: resume :: background :: 経歴 :: archive Artist's StatementUsing imagery inspired by my surroundings, background, and spirituality, I hope to bring to expression a holistic, or “integral” worldview. We are at the beginning of an entirely new age, the information age, and this means we now have easy access to the knowledge, experience, wisdom and reflection of all major human civilizations. Therefore, for the first time in human history, a new, holistic narrative is unfolding, one informed by Eastern, Western, queer, masculine, feminine, premodern, modern, and postmodern perspectives. I am never at a loss for what to paint since the possibilities within this new genre are endless. For several years now my main focus has been oil painting in a style of realism, and I feel most excited when I can experiment with imagery that is cross-cultural and interdisciplinary (i.e. magical, mythical, classical, empirical, and romantic). For this integral project I have been researching and synthesizing Eastern and Western approaches to art and spirituality for over 13 years. In 2004 I visited Europe and studied paintings by the Flemish masters, especially Vermeer and his Woman Pouring Milk. Seeing this work altered my path as a realist painter, and was a catalyst for me changing to a smaller, more intimate format. In 2005 I got my BFA in Painting at the University of Kansas and traveled to India to study Buddhism with the Dalai Lama at his monastery. That fall I moved to Japan where I taught English, exhibited artwork, and practiced Zen for five years. Keeping in mind important insights from Gestalt and Reception theory (where the viewer literally co-creates the artwork as they perceive it), my intention is to invite the viewer into a pictorial space where they can draw from their own history to create meaning and enact their own hermeneutical depth. David Titterington |