Artist’s Statement
I have a continuing interest in the conditions and attributes of place – geographic, historic, scientific, structural, atmospheric, memoric – and the use of mixed materials to investigate ideas of association, response, discovery and more. Place, for my purposes, describes a moment in time and my relational response to it. Materials are the raw substances and accumulations that serve as building blocks for creating something new. Inherent in these materials are the significant associations and intentions of their specific properties and use.
I approach art making as an investigative process requiring patient observation of my environment, constant exploration of materials and continuing creative practice. I often pursue subjects from multiple viewpoints, at different times and with evolved insights. Nature and processes of aging, erosion and decomposition provide inspiration.
I use a variety of materials to accomplish my intentions; these have included wood, metals, fabric, paper, found objects, acrylic, oil stick, pastel, graphite and more. Subject determines material as I explore attributes of light, texture, form, materiality and more. A digital microscope became the view finder for fascinating 3-D details of the botanic world, which became hand-cut paper studies in background/foreground, inspired by the observed forms and microscopic details. Sea life of the Turneffe Atoll provided raw camera footage for an ongoing series of colorful acrylic Strappo mono prints and woven tapestries. Black on black oil stick “shadow” paintings shift perspectives like shadows across the landscape that intuit the passage of time. Mixed media compositions provide a contemporary response to an aged historic gold mine, crafted of materials that become metaphors for the architectural, mechanical and human qualities of the mine. I revisit paintings and prints from my past, discovering that my thoughts have evolved over time, reflecting expanded knowledge, changing times, and personal adaptations and perspectives.
New ways of thinking about place inspires next versions of imagery.