I am concerned with the quality and nature of line and how it defines space. Various qualities of line emerge and define the physical space, movement and direction of the piece. The principles of construction and repair, deconstruction and entropy, and the tension between an ordered and chaotic universe are also recurring themes.

My work interprets a two or three-dimensional interior or exterior space, employing fresco technique and layering a variety of media, beeswax, pigments, enamel, pastel, over plaster-veneered wood panels. The paintings suggest snapshots of larger scenes, implying content beyond the confines of the painting. The surfaces are rich with the history of my exploration of line as generator of space. Through the layers, you can glimpse ghosts of a ground plan or landscape. Tensions are carefully balanced within each painting: between precise geometry and the obviously handmade; between arc and square; between glossy and matte finishes; between surfaces—both smooth and pockmarked.

It is my intention to challenge the viewer to take time to inspect the work closely, to be drawn in, suspending preconceptions and viscerally filing in the blanks. My palette has always been influenced by the austere and rich desert surroundings in which I was raised. My paintings are dramatically altered by the quality and direction of light, just as the desert is visually transformed over the course of a day.

- Michael Greenspan