I see abstract art as a means to entice the viewer to look at art in a new way, one that dares one's visual system to interpret the image in ways that are fundamentally different from how the real world is perceived.

I am an American born artist who believes that art is emotion and intellect made visible. Art is also a meditation on one's own life. As  Jean-Michel Basquiat once said, "I don't think about art when I'm working. I try to think about life."

I am a database and software engineer who deals with intellectual abstractions in the form of computer code, so it is a natural extension for me to abstract my emotions through acrylic and latex paints. I seldom have preconceived notions of what I intend to paint when I start. I select the kind of music I'm in the mood for, and paint while listening. Often, my brushstrokes, choice of colors, and intuition are a direct result of the music's effect on me. Since I must deal with excruciatingly detailed minutiae when I write software, abstract painting allows me to let it all go. Suffice to say, while I have the patience to write code, I do not have the patience to create representational art.

-- Jaime Gracia

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