Art is meant to arouse the senses and stir the spirit. It’s meant to visually stimulate the observer through colors, patterns, textures, and words and to inspire and to create contemplation, and this is my intent whenever I create a piece of art. Whether it’s my “Cerebral Pop Art” series entitled, “Images of Irony”, which provocatively juxtaposes society’s overindulgent obsession with celebrity against its perverse compulsion for consumerism, my “Positive Pop” series which puts an uplifting spin on the vintage soda signs of old in order to create a daily motivating reminder to live into our full potential or my “Dream Garden” series which visually stimulates through an abstract array of inspirational poppies my intent is straight forward, unmistakable, and direct. I am here to make a statement, to be a force, and to entice the viewer to think, to feel, and to be here and now. Kaleo’s artwork is executed through an array of mixed media applications, starting with a detailed graphite drawing of the subject on various paper stocks, scanned into his digital workstation, painted and layered with patterned graphics behind the foreground subject. Once the image is complete he ink transfers the artwork onto a wood framed and backed canvas. He then paints and embellishes with various mediums including acrylics, paint pens, ink and spray can. He then covers the entire piece with a high gloss gel and details the frame with customized, spray painted upholstery tacks. Kaleo then completes his work with a bolted plexi-glass frame raised over the canvas for a modern industrial look or finishes it with a thick UV protected epoxy resin coating, giving the piece a highly refined glass-like finish.