Steve Shanks

Artist's Statement
My paintings are about relationships and contrast. I seek to communicate how things affect each other; how childhood experiences continue to affect our view of the world today.

So much of what we adults see as part of our landscape, troubled us as children. We learn to ignore and accept what is all around us. But children see everything as new and without labels. Children are often fearless when it comes to experiences that adults build walls around and they are sometimes afraid of seemingly innocuous events that we take for granted. Everything has meaning and the smallest thing has great significance to a child.

Often the subjects of my work are waiting. We spend our lives waiting … and thinking. Their eyes are large, innocent and pure. They take in everything around them without filters. Their faces suggest trust and hope for the future. They are often contemplative, introspective and maybe even a little melancholy as they contemplate their experiences.

I try to capture a moment in a time past. A moment filled with possibilities and promise. We the viewer, are voyeurs but we bring with us all of our memories and all of our own lost dreams.

I want those who view my work, to be caught up in it. To stop and listen to what the painting says to them. I want them to remember what it was like to be a child. To see the world with fresh eyes and to hope.

Copyright Steve Shanks 2008 …. All rights reserved.