Stephen D'Onofrio

Region: Midwest

My work explores the relationship between physical spaces and the objects we fill them with. Often focusing on typical domestic decor and household ornaments, the work makes these inherently empty objects into simplified symbols that can then be rearranged and compressed to carry a formal sensibility. Currently, my work has concerned the idea of the painting as ornament, with the stock subjects of landscape, still life, and portraiture becoming knickknacks. I distill and consolidate these ideas, using a generic design vernacular to highlight both the familiar and the original within the home decoration aesthetic.