Dane Porter Artist Statement

It all started when I was very young. At a young age I noticed I had trouble falling asleep because art and design was a constant on my mind. These Ideas did not seem to leave my head until I brought the ideas and concepts to fruition in some form. This resulted into long days and late nights full of sketching. Little did I know those sketches would grow into something far larger than I could have ever imagined.

From the beginning I found myself working in the mediums of drawing and watercolor painting. Early in I quickly found my inspiration within nature. As a young artist I found that I eventually tired of the medium because it lacked dimension. I simply began to get frustrated with creating work that was always flat in nature. My longing for something different made me ask myself “why couldn’t I make my work textured and tactile?” Thus resulting in today’s current work.

I love working with many different materials from wood, metal, glass, and even unique materials such as fiberglass and stone into my pieces. A layering of colors and textures can be found throughout every work. Just as it began, nature continues to be the main inspiration powering most of my works.

I also find inspiration in architecture as well as minimalist forms and shapes. Fixing these themes together always poses an exciting and unexpected outcome in every piece, and that’s how I like it. My small Michigan based studio allows me just enough space to bring these crazy ideas to fruition allowing me to design, build, and install truly unique pieces of art all over. Whilst sharing a bit of my passion to others.