I grew up in the Champlain Valley of Vermont surrounded by mountains, and now live in New Orleans surrounded by music and movement. I was introduced to acrylic paint as a child, as my parents liked to paint as a hobby. Acrylic has been a steady constant throughout my life. While in school at Tulane University, I did my work-study with the ceramics department where I discovered an adeptness and love for sculpting clay. It remains my favorite medium. I find inspiration in the crowds in the city and the overlapping music drifting into the streets here. I find inspiration in the ironwork on the homes in the French Quarter. Most of all, I find inspiration in myself, in all the things I am supposed to dislike about myself and the thoughts that bubble over in my head. My work reflects the noise of excess thought from anxiety. It reflects the shapes and lumps and bumps that I refuse to hate, despite being fed a constant stream of believing that I should. 

- Max Simko