On the occasion of the exhibition Reading the Ruins: Paintings by Nathan Lewis at A-Space Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut, on view through September 29, 2012, Joe Bun Keo interviews painter Nathan Lewis about his work.

Lewis comments: "I think that dichotomy interests me. My inclination in painting is to observe, map, define, fail, and understand.The mark my hand naturally makes is somewhat lacking in control. There is the inherent feeling that my hand will always create something that has a good portion of chaos in it. Trying to will the orchestration of the image has more to do with the mind and a certain aesthetic sense that is built from temperament and experience. I think the tension is always there between the lack of control in my hand and a desire of the mind to achieve a certain type of clarity. In my mind, this tension is key in holding the painting together."