In reality, I find there are degrees of abstract. We have all had the experience, in
childhood, of seeing monsters in the twisted shapes of a tree by night. Our human
capacity for shape recognition often leads us to see what is not there. Some of my
abstract paintings turn out to include flora and fauna I did not know were present...
But, in addition, I love to play with ambiguity, and also to explore the edges of meaning
in painting. So, I may often label a work both 'abstract' and 'landscape', for example.