In 1906, the Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich created a stunning series of pieces for solo piano, called "24 Preludes and Fugues". The prelude serves to lay out a theme or themes, and the fugue explores that theme by having the theme repeated by various voices, overlapping each other. Shostakovich was harking back to Joseph Sebastian Bach's equally stunning series "The Well-Tempered Klavier", which was based on a similar pattern.

At an obvious level, the paintings have the structure of a fugue in that they take a theme and repeat it in various ways. They also share the meditative, introspective qualities of the musical antecedents. Furthermore, the structure of 24 different pieces, one for each major and minor key, gives shape to the series, suggesting a transition from one painting to the next.

(On a side note, Shostakovich's Preludes and Fugues also hold a sentimental place in my heart because it was the first music he learned to play on the piano. While renting an apartment in Tbilisi, Georgia, there was a piano available, and the Shostakovich was the easiest sheet music he could find. So, that's the first music I taught myself. I don't recommend that as a pedagogical method, though!)

All paintings are oil and charcoal on canvas. I start by doing a rough sketch on the canvas in charcoal, then paint over it with a thin coat of paint so the charcoal shows through slightly. As I continue to add layers of paint, I draw on top of the paint with the charcoal, playing with the interaction between painting and drawing, between line and plane.