About six months ago, I was scheduled via a friend in Los Angeles to perform at an art gallery for a charity benefit. I'm always eager to perform for a positive cause, and I entered what was a new venue for me with an open mind and virtually no expectations. What I encountered at MorYork gallery was a visual labyrinth of artwork the likes of which I'd never seen, and which immediately overwhelmed my senses in the best possible way.

Firstly, the loft-space, curated by veteran sculptor Clare Graham, was enormous and filled floor to ceiling with Graham's own creations from recycled materials - including everything from puzzle-pieces to tin cans to swizzle sticks and (yes) teddy bears. My eyes were enchanted by the level of detail in each individual piece, seemingly painstakingly put together and co-mingling with all manner of 'objets d'art' such as glass eyes, skulls, rosary beads and metallic gazing balls. Upon meeting the artist and his equally meticulous, gracious partner Bob, I was struck by his quiet, unassuming nature and the generosity with which he willingly opened his gallery to the community, apparently opening MorYork's doors to everyone from local musicians to dance, theater and fellow visual artists. I tried to imagine if any place like this might exist in NYC, but if so I certainly haven't encountered it.

Mostly, I felt an immediate sense of belonging. I have always had a penchant not only for creating visual art, collecting and surrounding myself with unusual and beautiful art objects, but specifically, I've always been drawn to the activity of decoupage - which in effect, is a form of revitalizing a blank or otherwise covered surface with cut-outs from paper magazines, books or any other form of collage-materials, and sealing them with glue or shellac. I've employed this technique to personalize keyboards, guitars, tables, chairs and everything in between for many years, and everything about Clare's self-created lexicon of visual artifacts and sculptures reminded me of my own ongoing creative process. It even reminded me of how I write music, and lyrics as well. I've always fancied myself as somewhat of a collage artist even while composing at the piano or producing in the studio. I hear other people's stories, or have an idea from my own imagination that feels resonant with a particular place and time - or even a film, play or novel - and often weave these disparate elements together, into something that hopefully feels entirely new. This process is part of what also makes me feel so integrated into the tradition of songwriting and of being part of the indie community in general, and I always recognize and feel grateful for this ability to channel my own emotions into such a transformational process.

For all these reasons and more, I chose MorYork Gallery and Clare Graham's art as the backdrop for my new video "Wax"...and I hope people who see it are inspired to channel the creative energy that went into making it into their own unique expression, recycled or otherwise!