Growing up and living along the shoreline of Lake Ontario, my art reflects what my eyes take in every day while I walk the shorelines beach combing. I also paint a lot of what I dream and at times blend the two together--carving and painting. My art has been called abstract impressionistic. That suits it fine. Mr. John Morrow gave it that title when he was looking at some works in Clayton, NY one summer.

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When I paint from my dreams it comes from some place so far from "reality" as people usually understand it. Reality--it doesn't have the colors or the skies, the trees, or the people that flow through my mind and through my hand on to the canvas.

 

I especially love beach combing after huge storms and in the spring looking for driftwood that has washed up to shore after being shaped and carved by the forces of the great lake. I love how the lake tells me what to carve from the special piece of driftwood I've found into something special to me. 

 

I also love walking the ridges of Tug Hill with my dog and Marian looking along the ravines for saplings growing out of the sides of the ravines for that special flow or movement that is needed to carve the right walking stick.

 

Lots of people tell me 'you can't do that', well you can. I'm doing this because of a back injury at work that forced me into an early retirement.

 

Everyone has a camera in their pocket.  Look around and look for pretty things or odd or cool things to photograph.  Get outside and enjoy. Thank you.

 

--John Horbacz;;AS THE CROW FLIES ARTWORKS