These paintings start with subjects that exemplify the contradictions of greatness and terror which often occur simultaneously in America - Cowboys, sports icons, comic books, the KKK to name a few. Our imperialist history is portrayed through figures like George Custer, while Colin Kaepernick is referenced within a shadowy American football player taking a knee. Vignettes appear from the events at the capitol on Jan 6, 2021, shifting into heroic capes billowing in the wind. The tactile paint is meant to viscerally engage in the inspiring, brutal nature of the violence that affects us through history and "these difficult times". The past decade has laid bare the violent, racist character of our country, as if it was not plain to see underneath the cape and cowl of America. My view of the American character is muddy in these waters...gritty, beautiful, horrific. As heroes and villains, these figures intertwine with the American mythology of superheroes, inspired by Greco- Roman and Norse dieties. My attraction to this power belies domination and subjugation cloaked in patriotism, and patriots as flawed heroes.