The Wait is Over! Two Brand New Terra Human Paintings!

Hello, I hope you are doing well! I'm really excited to share two brand new Terra Human Paintings with you today! As some of you may know I was not able to finish these paintings in time for the Contemporary Figuration show at Abend Gallery due to a muscle spasm in my neck. So after many many hours of painting I finally finished these two pieces and am so excited to share them with you. For clarity these paintings are available DIRECTLY from me since they were never exhibited at the gallery.

 
 

If you have the time please read my descriptions for the paintings as well, I dedicate a lot of time and energy into writing thoughtful descriptions for every painting I make and these are certainly no exception.  I really hope that these paintings encourage introspection and a renewed sense of empathy. Please reach out to me if you want to know more about these paintings (ie. additional photos or videos). They can be purchased directly from my website by using the buttons below the photos. Payment plans are available upon request so don't hesitate to contact me if that is something you are interested in.

 
 

"Same Breath"  |  12"x12" Framed  |  *SOLD*

Painting Description
After wandering the harsh and unforgiving mountains for longer than he could remember he realized that he had forgotten what he was searching for. He was desperately in need of something but could never find it and couldn’t even name it. Not knowing what to do or where to go he stoped in his tracks, kneeled down and reached down into the earth that he had been traversing on top of for all of his life. Feeling something soft among the dirt and roots he used all of this strength to pull a human form from the earth that housed it for so long. He held her in this exact spot for years looking at her in awe and feeling at peace, as if he finally understood something better than he understood himself. And the longer he held her the more he wished to see the world as she might see it.
Slowly every breath he exhaled moved a part of his soul into her. Until he no longer had the strength to hold her but as he took his last breath she took her first and she was able to hold him as his warmth departed. Saying goodbye she slowly lowered him to rest in the mountains as the tress and plants lovingly embraced his presence. In a new form but with the same breath she was now free to walk this earth truly at peace, no longer searching.

 
 

"Harvest Moon"  |  12"x16" Framed  |  $2500

Painting Description
In times of true despair we are the most open to changing our ways. When our hearts are finally empty and our minds exhausted we finally look outside of ourselves to do the one thing we swore we would never do, ask for help. Less than halfway up the mountain we collapse, we lay down our pride and stop ignoring the pain that has plagued us for so much of the journey. With tears falling from our eyes we give in to all that has overwhelmed us, finally acknowledging the hurt and letting it envelope us.
After some time of gazing at the moon for comfort we finally look around to see many others who are illuminated by the moonlight as well, all making the same journey up the mountain. But they all look down as they trudge their way up with the same pains and despair weighing them down. All but one who notices us sitting in the cold dirt and offers an open hand but when we are too exhausted to take it so they decide to sit down with us, staring at the moon and enjoying the comfort of another.

"As One" has been SOLD!

I am so honored to say that my painting “As One” has been sold! This piece has been so special to me for several years now and I’m ecstatic that it found a new home.

For me, this painting served as a giant leap forward in my skill level and confidence as an artist when I made it back in 2019. While creating this piece I had to silence so many doubts and trust myself and the final result allowed me to keep pushing with even bigger and better paintings.

And while I have you here, I want to encourage you to use the button below to see what paintings and prints are available in my online shop! Artwork can make for such meaningful holiday gifts!

Terra Human | Six New Paintings!

Hi all! In case you missed it, I’ve compiled all of my new paintings from my solo show with Abend Gallery right here in this blog post! I worked INCREDIBLY hard on this show and it would mean the world to me if you checked out all of these paintings either here or on the Abend website. These six paintings took over six months to produce and each one has a special place in my heart. If you click on the full image of each painting you can view that piece on the Abend website and purchase it if you wish. Also prints of all of these paintings are available directly from me. All you have to do is click the button below to view them in my shop!

One Hundred Years

This painting explores a single moment expanded over a century . This woman has searched far and wide to find the perfect natural setting for her to sit and search for answers to her deepest questions. In her first few years sitting in this exact spot, she learns about herself, thinking about her uniqueness as an individual and coping with and later resolving past traumas that she let define her for so many years. 

While sitting a little longer, she is able to open her mind beyond herself, recognizing the people that she has hurt and the people she has loved, forgiving herself for past mistakes and accepting who she is at her core. After this step she begins to feel every rock and every blade of grass that surrounds her as they begin to grow up her form and embrace her stillness. After several more years of sitting she begins to feel the presences of every single life form around her. Every insect, bird, mouse and rabbit emits a pulse of life that gives her energy and a sense of belonging. After many more years, the concept of time begins to lose its meaning and the straight line from beginning to end starts to connect end to end forming a circle. After sitting for 100 years her past and future fade away and she finds the moment.

herself.Original Piece Size: 10”x15”

Medium: Oil on Panel (Framed)

Citadel

As she looks towards the setting sun, she thinks of the many people who tried to remove her from this exact spot. Their words trying to convince her that she was undeserving of love and too vulnerable to achieve her ambitions. She thinks of the many sacrifices that she made in order to forge her own path in a world trying to push her into mediocrity. No matter how much doubt manifested in her head and no matter how much negativity she received from others, she chose to hold her ground believing in her abilities. Poised and willing to grow, she learned from the cliffs around her to be confident and decisive while learning from the wild grass to flexible and move with the wind. As the ocean breeze blows through her hair and the waves embrace her feet, she reflects on the end of another day and she takes pride in trusting

herself.Original Piece Size: 14”x20”

Medium: Oil on Panel (Framed)

Coherence

This painting provides a visualization of the dichotomy between how we see ourselves and how others see us. When we do the intense work of learning about ourselves and consciously choose to grow we can feel lost and fragmented. Just like plants, as we grow our branches might split in order to reach in new facets of ourselves but they are still rooted to the same source. In our eyes this growing and splitting can make us feel fractured and undefined, lost because we are looking for purpose. But in the eyes of those who love us, they can step back and see us as a beautiful collage of intertwining and complex branches, growing towards the light of self-knowledge. When they look into our eyes they see all of our new and old facets defining us and guiding us to our true identity.

Original Piece Size: 12”x16”

Medium: Oil on Panel (Framed)

Light After Dark

This piece illustrates the morning after a prolonged darkness of pain and helplessness. When we hurt for the world we feel an unrelenting sadness to our core and it can be unbelievably difficult to see how the sun will rise again. There are so many aspects of this world that can make us feel powerless, to the point when we may even feel that have lost autonomy over our own bodies and minds. But on this particular morning, the sun rose with incredible power, casting warmth and light on all those people who try to do good in this world. The sunbeams illuminate these individuals showing their love and empathy and as you open your eyes you can see their drive to change our world for the better. Even knowing that the darkness will inevitably take over again, the intense light gives us a renewed sense of agency to fight for others and to fight for a better world.

Original Piece Size: 10”x15”

Medium: Oil on Panel (Framed)

Sower of Seeds

This painting shows a man in complete harmony with the nature that surrounds him. But this harmony hasn’t always existed, in the distant past this being thought  himself superior to the natural world and chose to exploit it for personal gain.  He completely lost his identity and his relationship with nature in the pursuit for power. Eventually this conflict reached a breaking point and the man was forced to confront his misdoings and reshape his relationship with the fading life that sounded him. This man spent years working to reverse his mistreatments to our world while closely studying how the smallest lifeforms live in cooperative harmony. Across these many years he has also done the work of self-reflection and personal growth to find a balance in his soul that gave him a renewed respect for nature. And once he found this balance and drastically changed his actions, the grass and trees around him began to feel safe to embrace him once again even while knowing his dark and selfish past. Even after all of the wrong he did, the most vulnerable life forms in our world embraced him with forgiveness and acceptance. This being who used to be a destroyer and conqueror has now became a true nurturer of life, serving as a protector of the planet that gave him everything he knows.

Original Piece Size: 10”x14”

Medium: Oil on Panel (Framed)

Protected Spirit

As we grow from children to adults our harsh and structured world does its best to conform us, placing us in categorized boxes of adulthood to keep our world organized. The first thing to be lost in this process is our childlike creativity that brings joy, wonder and excitement into our lives. The hands in this painting are protecting this pure and creative spirit even while the outside world attempts to extinguish it. This energetic spirit longs to dance, create with colors, sing songs and construct stories as a way to bring life into a sometimes colorless world. These hands are choosing to foster this spirit in order to encourage love and empathy in a world that needs it now more than ever.

Original Piece Size: 9”x12”

Medium: Oil on Panel (Framed)

Complete Process Video for "Interconnection"

I hope you enjoy this process video for my painting “Interconnection” this piece took many hours of planning and prep as well as many more hours of concentrated work. This piece is currently available from Abend Gallery in Denver if you are interested! You can click the button below to view this piece on the gallery website.

Full Process Video for "The Lost Traveler"

I hope you enjoy this process video for my painting “The Lost Traveler”. I worked very hard on this piece everyday for more than a month so I hope you enjoy seeing this process sped up to just a few minutes. This original painting is available from Abend Gallery in Denver, click the button below to view this piece on their website.

Three Paintings Sold to a New Collector!

 

Hi everyone! I'm really happy to say "Surrender" "Impending Storm" and "Ghost Ranch" have all sold to a new collector! I always feel so fortunate when someone new finds my work and decides that they just have to have some of it in their home.

I want to give a special shoutout to the Los Alamos community for engaging in my work on facebook and welcoming me as a new small business. Their kind and welcoming words really help me feel like my art is connecting with people. I feel very luck to be a part of such a well-connected and engaging community!

 

3 New Terra Human Paintings for the Holiday Miniatures Show!

I’m really excited to share 3 brand new Terra Human paintings for the 30th Annual Holiday Miniatures Show at Abend Gallery!
These pieces along with many other incredible paintings are now officially available during the virtual opening at AbendGallery.com click the button below to view this amazing show! Scroll down to view all three of my paintings!

 
 

“A Moment of Acceptance”

7”x11'“

Oil on Artefex Panel (Framed)

Available for $775 from Abend Gallery

This piece serves as a reminder of the importance of our self image. How we think of and speak to ourselves greatly influences our mental health and mental well-being and unfortunately we can be our own biggest critics. But if we can choose to give ourselves the grace and patience that we give others we will find ourselves in a healthier mental state. Like many of us, the person in this painting sometimes asks too much of herself and can’t help but speak words of negativity in order to push herself. But these words can do more harm that we know, degrading our self worth and leaving us unbalanced. The moment in this painting is a moment of realization. A moment in which we see ourselves for all of our strengths and weaknesses and decide to give ourselves the grace that we need to stay healthy and balanced.

 
 

“Creator and Creation”

7”x11'“

Oil on Artefex Panel (Framed)

Available for $775 from Abend Gallery

This piece illustrates the innate connection we all have with the natural world that created us. The incredible nature that surrounds us serves many purposes and one of which is the way in which it encourages us to look inward and recalibrate our identity. Often times our fast paced lifestyle causes us to lose sight of who we are and replaces our empathy with malice and judgment that distances us from others and ourselves. Our primal brains are still catching up with the ever changing lives that we live, which are filled with social media, technology and an overwhelming amount of complicated people. 

But when we are able to step out of the day to day chaos and immerse ourselves in the nature that created us we connect with our surroundings and tap into our primal nature. This innate connection we have with nature can help us reestablish what we value in our lives and it can help us grow as individuals to then better serve others.

 
 

“The Giver”

7”x11'“

Oil on Artefex Panel (Framed)

Available for $775 from Abend Gallery

This piece is an ode to those who strive to do good in this world. The people who despite the darkness surrounding them emit a light of empathy, kindness and understanding that inspires others. These people are the helpers, listeners, watchers and hard workers who always seek to help the world even in the most microscopic of moments or gestures and never ask for anything in return. The heart of a giver is one that should be cherished.

New Figure Painting!


I've been meaning to share this figure painting that I made a few weeks ago so here it is! This piece served as a study for an upcoming Terra Human painting that I'm working on right now!
Feel free to contact me if you are interested in this lovely piece, I worked very hard on the lighting and intricate color relationships 

 
 

This piece is currently available for purchase! Contact me or check my online shop for purchase!

New Show Announcement!

Hello everyone, I'm really excited to announce that my two paintings "Walking Giants and "Between Light and Shadow" will be in the Influences Art Show put on by the Loveland Artists Collective!

This show will be open the whole month of September with an in-person opening reception on September 11th. 😷
If you are in the area come check out my paintings as well as the other awesome artwork in this show!

A Very Special Painting

About a month ago my father-in-law lost his dad and my wife had the idea to paint this beautiful photo of their hands during his final hours. Losing a loved one is incredibly hard, but I think it’s especially difficult to lose a parent. I asked my father-in-law about the significance of his and his father’s hands and this is what he said.

“Our hands represent our ability to work, to create, to hug, to wave, to congratulate. They hint at how hard our life was and how fragile we really are.  My dad’s hands are a window into how he lived his life. He was a tireless hard worker and used his hands to build and create many a building, out of bricks, blocks, glass, and wood. The scars and callouses on his hands also give a glimpse that he did not live in fear and was tough enough to do anything he put his mind to. In his final hours, his hands were still strong and yet soft. I will miss dad and his hands.”
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant…”
I chose to name this piece "When Our Work is Done" because Levi was a worker and a problem solver all of his life and now he finally gets to rest.
Levi will be greatly missed and never forgotten.

Throwback Thursdays!

For today's Throwback Thursday I thought it would be a great opportunity to look back at all the paintings I've created so far this year!
Now it's safe to say that 2020 has been a rough year for most of us for a number of reasons but I cannot help by still be thankful for for the people who appreciate and buy art even when our world is so uncertain. I personally think that art can be a powerful catalyst for self reflection and introspection that can make a huge difference in our lives. And I feel like so many of you understand this as well and it makes me really grateful to have any sized following as long as they understand my message.
So as we push past the halfway mark of this year I hope that we can all seek to understand each other to the best of our abilities so that we can progress as a whole. Even though the world can potentially throw even more at us in the coming months I still look to the future with optimism because I believe in the power of art.
So thank you for all of your support so far in 2020! I hope that I can create even more amazing art in the second half of the year as well as connect with more artists and kind collectors!

First Half of 2020 All Paintings.jpg

For this week’s Throwback Thursday I thought it would be fun to look at two paintings with very similar compositions and subjects that are 3 years apart!
It’s pretty cool to see how my technique and observation of color has improved over the years, resulting in more vibrant paintings with more depth in my opinion. I love seeing these pieces side by side because even though I would consider one much better than the other because I can safely say that each painting was the result of my ABSOLUTE best effort at the time and that is something I can always be proud of.
When I’m creating a new painting it can be a really intimidating process and one of the ways I cope with this pressure is understanding that I don’t need the painting to be perfect, I just strive to make each painting better than the last. And honestly its okay if that doesn’t even happen either. There are many ups and downs when creating artwork and its totally fine when you try something and it doesn’t work.
Over these past few years I have been pushing myself inch by inch to create better artwork, trying not to ask too much of myself but always striving to get better. And its really been working for me and I encourage you do try this as well in other aspects of life. There is nothing wrong with taking small manageable steps towards your goals, it can keep your mental health in check and bring you to some amazing results over time!

TBT EVE and Vulnerability.jpg

I thought today’s Throwback would be a great opportunity to talk about what I feel is one of the more important themes in my work which is vulnerability in men.⁣
I first started to explore this theme in my artwork back in 2017 with “Shelters Built on Men” a piece that explores the pressures we place on men in our society and how we build upon their backs expecting them to always be strong and unwavering. This piece served as a great transition into illustrating themes that have a strong significance in my life and address issues that are important to me. ⁣
As I’ve explored this theme over the years with several paintings I’ve started to think about the pressures we put on ourselves as men and the societal norm for us to hold in our feelings, fears and troubles. There are so many troubled men in our world who feel alone because they fear above all else the idea of being vulnerable with another person. They choose to suppress their emotions because they are afraid to feel what’s inside of them.⁣
Exploring this theme can be rewarding yet difficult for me, because it not only makes me worry about the mental state of men in our society but also my own mental and emotional state. Am I being real with the people around me? Am I being real with myself?⁣
But when I look outside myself and think about the men surrounding me in my life, they are the ones that brings me hope. When I think about the male friends and acquaintances in my life, I cannot help but see their incredible growth over the years that I’ve know them. These are people who are seeming to push against the perceived norm and are willing to be vulnerable with themselves and with people around them. They are pushing to learn more about what’s inside of them so that they can be better partners and friends. But most importantly they are being genuine with each other, sharing their struggles, anxieties and fears so that these emotions don’t bottle up and change them from the inside. ⁣
⁣
Cheers to these people in my life! You know who you are! Please know that I appreciate and celebrate you!⁣
Thanks for reading!

Hidden Away TBT.jpg

"Walking Giants" Full Process Video!

 I really hope you all enjoy this extensive process video showing how I created "Walking Giants." It not only takes a long time to complete a painting but it also takes plenty of additional time to create and edit a video showing how I made it. So I hope you enjoy watching this painting process and hopefully learn some things about my how I work and why I make certain decisions.
Personally it's almost therapeutic for me to look back on how I created a piece and record my thoughts in a video. I feel like I get to fully process the experience and share my insights with you!

This original piece is available for purchase directly from me! CLICK HERE TO VIEW IT IN MY SHOP!

"Walking Giants" New Newest Terra Human Painting!

I'm incredibly proud to bring you my newest Terra Human painting "Walking Giants." This piece is the result of approximately 185 hours of focused and diligent work and I'm really happy with how it turned out.
Now usually I like to tell you that "I really enjoyed working on this piece!" But that wouldn't be entirely true with this one. Honestly this painting process had a lot of ups and downs with plenty doubt looming around in my head. I had some days when I felt really optimistic about the piece and was convinced it would be my best painting yet. But I also had other days when I thought this piece was too much to handle and it would be a waste of time. I just kept telling myself that if I continued to persevere and allowed my identity to come through the brushstrokes, then the piece would turn into something special.
In the end I think it's okay that this piece wasn't 100% awesome to work on everyday. I think the struggle makes it that much more meaningful to me and I now feel really accomplished to have conquered this project. I really hope that this piece brightens your day and prompts you look inward.
I will be posting this full piece with it's description soon so be on the look out for that!

“Walking Giants” Currently available for purchase in my online store. CLICK HERE TO VIEW IN MY STORE!


✍🏻 This painting addresses the concept of humility. There is so much that we can obtain and achieve in our lives that it’s easy to forget the vastness of space and time as well as our small part in this infinite world.  We are seen in this painting traversing this world with true humility and a willingness to learn. As we walk we take care not to crush even the smallest plants and animals because we understand that all life plays an important role on this planet. As the luminous sunrise bathes the surrounding cliff edges with color and warmth we are reminded of the seemingly infinite amount of time this planet has been alive and changing. And we start to understand that our time here is short yet meaningful and there is much good that we can do if we walk tall and care for those who are both bigger and smaller than us.

"Hidden Meadow" | New Terra Human Painting!

Happy Friday everyone! I would like to introduce you to my newest Terra Human painting titled "Hidden Meadow"

I’ve spent this past month in quarantine painting this beauty! I’m not going to lie it was difficult at times to be working on such a daunting project while the there has been so much uncertainty in our world during this global pandemic. I definitely experienced days when I felt like it was all too much and I felt powerless and small. And something that brought me out of this darkness was knowing that small things done right really add up and I should focus on the things that were in my control. I could control how much time I painted/ worked and I could also control how much time I relaxed and took a moment for myself and my mental wellbeing. It has really been beneficial for me to look at my goals as marathons instead of sprints. I sometime's get so excited about the final result that I just want to run towards it as fast as I can, but I’ve learned that if I pace myself I will stay balanced and in control. Meaningful things take time and patience and that’s what I kept reminding myself while I was painting this piece.

So this painting is the result of over 50hours of patient work and planning. I hope you enjoy it and please feel free to read the description below.

 
 

This painting is about the places we go in times of distress in order to find peace and reassurance. These imaginary worlds can be made up of memories, images and emotions that bring us joy and comfort when we need it the most. We all have these types of locations in our memory and we retreat to them when the outside world can be too much for us to handle and we need to sit with our thoughts and emotions.

This painting illustrates what it looks like when we travel to this perfect spot in our mind, fall down into the soft trees and rest our eyes. Our bodies become one with our surroundings and the plants and animals grow and live in harmony with us without fear. We blend into the environment that we hold so dear to our heart and find a rejuvenated strength underneath the mountains. This strength allows us to stand back up despite the fear that is waiting for us on the other side and depart this comforting world with a level head and an accepting heart. 

I really hope you enjoy this new piece in my Terra Human series. This original painting is available for purchase! Click here if you would like to view this painting in my shop!

Terra Human | "Imprint"

My newest Terra Human painting “Imprint” is finished and available! This piece expresses how an environment can leave a lasting impact on us, bonding with us on a spiritual level in a way that allows us to learn something new about ourselves.

We often strongly identify with our surroundings growing up and this can influence what places bring us the most joy and introspection later in life. But we can also find a deep appreciate for new environments where significant moments take place. There are times when every aspect of a moment is perfect and this amount of bliss creates a strong tie to what surrounds you. Everything from what you see, to what you smell, to what you touch gets imprinted into your memory and this place is now a part of who you are. This location has now been saturated with incredibly strong emotions and it is almost impossible to separate the two. The joy you feel when you remember a perfect moment in a perfect place is almost intoxicating and it inspires you to explore and seek out more moments of bliss and perfection.

This piece is available to purchase in my online shop for $500. Click here to view this painting in the shop!

 
 

I really enjoyed creating this piece and the part I loved most about it was the colors. I love working with warm colors and was really nice to see how they create a mood. The intense sunlight made a variety of yellows, oranges and reds that really contributed to the overall look of the piece. My favorite detail of this piece has to be the light coming through her hair. From the initial stages of this piece I was really excited to paint her sunlit hair so when I finally painted this section I had a great time and it really made the lighting convincing.

Terra Human | "Between Light and Shadow"

My newest Terra Human painting is finally done! After weeks of tweaking, reworking and obsessing over minute details she is finally done! I really hope you enjoy this piece and please read the full description!

 
IMG_7115.JPG
 

Process: I started this painting by using a grid on my reference image and then drawing the same grid onto my panel so I could accurately lay out my composition. After that I started to immediately paint the face because I knew it would take the longest and require the most accuracy. As you can see by the process images below I reworked the face several times and painted several layers in order to obtain the realism that I wanted.

As you can see in some of the later images, I experimented with many different abstractions in order to get the right look for the painting. There were several instances when I would paint a section like the window or her arm in a particular way and the next day I would changed it because I didn’t like how it looked. Overall I found this piece much more approachable by painting it in sections. I would mix up my color palette for a particular part of the piece and then only focus on that area for almost the whole day.

 
 

This original painting is available to purchase in my shop! CLICK HERE TO VIEW IT IN MY SHOP!

Between Light and Shadow Side 1.jpg

Description: “Between Light and Shadow” The concept of this painting is strongly linked into the techniques I employed to create it. The biggest hurdle I needed to overcome in this particular piece was how to properly observe and render this figure which has so many complex and nuanced shadows. And when I identified this issue I couldn’t help but see the parallel to the shadows in our lives. It is no secret that many of us feel shaded by experiences in our lives that we just cannot seem to brighten. These experiences may even define us for a certain amount of time and control our behaviors because they affected us so deeply. I even felt this way when I started painting the figure’s face and couldn’t seem to see any end in sight. I felt a bit lost in these darker values and couldn’t see the distinct differences between colors. It seemed like colors and values were getting muddled in the shadows making me think there was no beginning or end to my brush strokes.
But as I progressed with this painting and persevered to give it a chance to develop I started to discover that with time and effort these shadows presented rare opportunities. I began to see the subtle colors that can be found in shadows because of reflected light. I started to understand that theses shadows created an amazing contrast that made the highlights even brighter. The figure I was painting was no longer defined by the shadows that used to haunt her rather now her character was enhanced and clarified by the this darkness. The shadows now seemed to server as a backdrop for all of the light that is embracing her.
We all experience shadowing in our lives but as we grow we learn to create our own definitions of ourselves and we can choose the path that allow us to see the most light.
Thank you for reading!

My Newest Terra Human Painting!

NEW TERRA HUMAN PIECE! After working on this piece for a few weeks I'm happy to say it is finally done! I really enjoyed playing with textures in this one and problem solving the composition. Here are the details and the description...
Title : Hidden Away | 12"x16" Available for $650 Framed

Click here to view this piece in my shop!

 
 

This piece deals with our reactions to stress and anxiety. The person in this piece has a tendency to respond to stresses in his life by pulling away and blending into his surroundings. He hopes that if he is invisible his problems won’t find him and he can take comfort by retreating into himself. As he blends further and further into the environments that surrounds him he starts to loose sight of his priorities and the traits that define him as a person.
By retreating like this he cuts himself off from others and the ways in which they can help him. In his brain he sees asking for help as a weakness and thinks his problems will only hurt the people closest to him. While he is pulling away from others his gaze narrows and he sees less and less of the big picture and only focuses on himself and the fact that he is stuck.
There are not right or wrong ways to deal with stress in our lives but the more we can let people into our realities they better they will understand us and how we process our issues.