Artist statement

Much of my art emerges from reflections on nature. I maintain an abiding trust in the faithfulness and fecundity of the natural world, both generous and fierce. I make art to create a visually accessible expression between inner and outer events. My work is a process of constant learning through satisfying experiences tempered with mistakes and opportunities for growth, both a portal to great possibilities for self-fulfillment as well as for sharing with others.

My primary medium is acrylic paint and I often incorporate collage papers, stamping, colored pencil and other media. Realism not being my intention, I express myself with rudimentary motifs such as animals, both real and imagined, botanical shapes and human figures. I begin most paintings with no specific plan, preferring to let the work lead me. I lay out blocks of color, sketch in loosely rendered lines both thick and thin, then reflect. I layer on more paint and define shapes, sometimes rubbing away to reveal the under painting. When I do have a specific statement I want to make, it is done in a series. An example of this is the Flotsam series that I did after finding human discards along beaches. Items like tea kettles, toys, fishing gear, plastic bottles and other waste prompted and urgency to paint these scenes. Another series resulted from numerous visits to the Fern Hill Wetlands in Oregon with its tall grasses, trees topped with bird nests, migrating geese and water mammals building their homes.