How do I decide what to paint? I have asked this from the beginning. There are a million things to paint. It didn’t matter too much to me at first, I was just trying to learn how to actually paint. Learning how to write, in a sense, or learning how to play the guitar, like 1st grade. Once I started to learn the nature of oil paint and how the process works then I started to think about what I wanted to paint, what I wanted to say or express. My friend Duffy Sheridan always told me, “You have to have a vision”. And I was like, “Great, how do I get one?” But I know now, after thinking about it for a few years, that a vision has to be developed through constant thought: “What am I capable of and what is the nature of my art form?” Then, “How can I add to the great body of art that already exists in a way that is new and original?” Also, “What is beauty? And what are the unique attributes of an oil painting that only it can express?” -- Capitalize on these things; Learn the unchanging laws of the true nature of a beautiful painting and then apply those to my original ideas of expressing mood and narrative. I study relentlessly the best artists and paintings in the world. Through all of this, the vision is given. It is given because I passionately pursue it. Now, like playing the guitar, the process of using the instrument to express myself becomes so easy and second nature that I can use my mental facilities to dig deeper within myself and to share this vision; This process creating the greater potential of reaching just as deep into the viewer or listener.