Meet the Artist
The name is Phil. Preferably just Phil.
Otherwise, I feel like I’m getting in trouble and that’s not for me. My journey to this moment has felt long, but it has been mine and my experience. I have always had a love for the arts, but pre-college it was focused on the performing arts through band and theater. I graduated from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in 2015 with a BFA in Applied Media Arts (focus on Graphic Design) and a BA in Theater Arts. I left university and worked at a marketing agency creating ads and collateral for various clients. It was during my year and a half there that I realized I missed creating physical pieces and working directly with people and decided it was time to return to school. In 2019, I graduated from Kent State University with a Master of Arts in Teaching for Art Education. Since then, I have been working as a Middle School Art Teacher. Being a teacher rekindled the love I once had for creating and experimenting with techniques and media to share with my scholars.
My first year of teaching came along with the height of COVID-19 and the national school shutdown. During this time, I spent a great deal of quarantine creating art and taking online courses through Udemy and Skillshare for painting and drawing. I am a proud life-long learner and have since started a daily practice of creating, experimenting and sharing my journey through Instagram and TikTok.
Most of what I have created is an exploration of color and techniques using objects in individual still lives. “Things” play a role in our identities. These are our props, our conversation pieces, our memories. They are visual reminders and cues as to who we are as people. Our cultures. Our similarities and our differences. Our “things” can be static and evergreen. Or our “things” can evolve as we grow throughout our lives.
Anyone can create art. Every art piece has a story. A portion of that story is presented by the artist. A part is what the viewer brings along with them.
Where I’m Located
Located in Youngstown, Ohio. Local commissions are free of shipping if picked up.