These paintings date back to when I was living in San Antonio. Artistically, I was experimenting with ideas and concepts and trying to express them on canvas. I had a series of paintings based on reggae music. I was fixated on trying to capture a moment in time, on one level up close and on the other trying to capture the interaction of large groups of people in urban space. I was lucky to meet the pastor of St. George's Maronite Catholic Church, Lebanese Catholics. His name was Fr. Jim Kouhry. The parish was building a new church and he was looking for artists.  He commissioned a number of pieces that helped me get ready for the big commission a 3 panel 24 x 8  ft mural depicting Holy Week. While I was researching the piece I discovered the paintings in the cave churches of Cappodocia in Turkey. The influence of those paintings helped define the techniques I use in my own iconography. All in all fairly primitive, and in some cases down right bad. But I was learning to be an artist and if that was the goal I think this was a good training ground.