"I am primarily a planar landscape painter. I feel that painting from life gives me a fine sensitivity and closeness to my subject. Working in an environment that is always changing warrants the artist to be efficient. For this reason, the strokes I make with the brush are broad and direct. The shapes I create are also simplified, but whether or not this is to be expedient in the field or my natural style I do not know. I do know that when I view the work of other artists, I enjoy seeing what their hand has done, and this is revealed by a directly applied brush stroke. It is the canvases, with direction and energy, I put the most value on. My favorite analogy is the one of the blacksmith versus machine made ironware. A blacksmith crafts his tools using his mind and his hands. In doing so, something is made unique. If you look close enough you will see each blow of the hammer and each stroke of the file it took to make the object. Machined objects are very close to exact duplicates and furthermore don't have a refined quality like handmade things. In a day and age where most of everything we see and touch is made by gadgets and circuits it is refreshing to set eyes upon a work of art."

"When out in the field my eyes are attracted to negative space; that glow of light peering through the silhouette of trees. Here in the west we are blessed with ponderosa pines and cottonwoods, which make great subjects. They seem to have a persona, diverse character and personality."

"When I look out onto the prairies of Eastern Montana, I see a land with a vastness of life and seasons. This sacred circle is my inspiration to create. I attribute the passion I have for painting to my mother and father, who exposed me at a young age to the outdoors. It is with the wonderment of that boy's eyes and the wisdom of this man's age that I take into the field to create with. Joe graduated from Towson State University with a major in art and printmaking. He has participated in the Western Heritage Show, Yellowstone Art Auction, and the Custer County Art Center where he won the 21st Annual Juried Exhibit. He was also the winner of the Maryland Distinguished Scholar.