Artist Statement: My paintings have taken on a more personal significance as I explore content that has importance to me; moving beyond the figure and still lifes. I am striving to obtain composition, balance and color relation while experimenting with textures. Even though my intuitive responses occasionally stray from color accuracy, I want to maintain precision with perspective and proportion. I have come to the realization that I am not a narrative artist, but would like my viewers to experience a sense of escape. My work has taken on new directions through the inspiration and study of artists that have made an impact on me, especially from the Impressionist era. Monet, Renoir and Corot have enlightened me on how to really capture a moment in time in a simplistic manner. They give just enough indication and detail to portray a mood. Caravaggio and Artemisia Gentileschi’s realism and extensive technique have helped me enhance my style and progress as an artist. Modern painters such as the Wyeth family have provided me with motivation and insight. My more recent paintings contain elevated complexities with composition, lighting and contrast. The main focus is the distortion of images within water that converses with the concrete physicality of its surroundings. Rather than being inclusive of the standard formula of distribution between sky and land, I prefer to mostly deny the sky to allow water to be the primary element. Artist Bio: When I was six years old my family and I relocated from Riverside, California to Portland, Maine. This is where I spent most of my life until I went to college in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Marywood University became my home for seven years and where I earned a BFA in Art therapy and minor in psychology. I had decided to remain at Marywood to receive a Master of Fine Arts in Painting degree. During the seven years I had studied abroad for two semesters in Florence, Italy, where I was trained in oil and fresco painting which I plan to continue in the states. Europe was a life altering experience that I would definitely do again if given the opportunity. Being able to study the masters from Musee Marmottan Monet, Louvre, Uffizi and others have broadened my skills and highly influenced my work. Since completing my master's degree in May 2012 I have returned to Portland, Maine.

A humorous graffiti and lowbrow artist, Nastee is noted for his paint-splattered chromatic color schemes juxtaposed with bold linework and kitsch subject matter. His preferred mediums are acrylics, spray paint and inks.