For me, creating art is a continuous learning process about myself, those around me, and the complexity of this world. Combining humor and playfulness with the intense issues that are involved in trying to understand myself and others is a natural response to the way I see the world--a place filled with so many wonderful feelings and possibilities, and yet a very frustrating place full of all sorts of struggles.

At first glance my artwork may seem whimsical, childlike, and even silly. Yet after a closer look, one may realize there are more serious thoughts and ideas under the surface. Often cute and carefree characters, everyday objects and food are painted paired up with the serious issues that we humans work on or struggle with.

The raw and primitive quality of my paintings is the most honest way for me to work and express myself. Many of my painted images are taken directly from my sketchbook and visual journals. I feel that I am able to translate the freshness and intentions of the original sketches into paint by using the materials in a way that is most natural and immediate to me.

The canvas becomes a place where the chaos of the adult world can meet and become woven together with the wonder of the childlike world. This intertwining is not only represented psychologically, but in a physical way as well. The paint itself is often aggressively scraped away, built up thick, pushed around, and layered. In my more recent paintings, cut and torn fabric is collaged onto the canvas as a background and almost becomes a comfort blanket or clothing to soften the intense energy of the image and message.

Text is also an important part of my art. Often the idea for the text and the image happen together in the dialogue that is created in my sketchbook, so it seems only natural to keep them this way once they become a painting. The words I use in my art not only help to further convey my ideas, but they also become an important element of the composition that can be experimented with and manipulated, in much the same way that I work with the paint.

With the duality that exists in my work--issues with adult complexity that are depicted with a child-like simplicity--I hope to challenge the people who view my work to see things from multiple perspectives and to look past the surface to learn more about themselves and the world around them.

-Ali LaRock