Series: A Sideways Glance
Artist Statement
At times, I can find myself cruising through life, looking but not seeing, not really being focused in the full sense of what is
happening now. It seems that I become preoccupied on what the future might be, or perhaps reflecting on the past of what was.
Either way, I am not really enjoying fully what is happening in the moment.
I am especially prone to being in a mental state of cruise control and semi-conscious when driving on Freeways and
Expressways through nondescript or uninteresting landscapes. Thus I do not get a full sense of real life.
The Inland Empire of Southern California is a dose of reality of real life. The Western border of the Inland Empire, along the
I-15 Freeway, in Riverside County, from which this series is derived, is dusty, gritty and not very pretty. It is not beautiful like its
bordering neighbors of Orange and San Diego County and their cities of Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. You would prefer
to be someplace else.
Thus, the drive through the Inland Empire receives just a sideways glance, an attempt to avoid the realities of life.
Best regards, Doug Stockdale