I am interested in observing the nuance of each day and how what we see and experience can shift and adjust from one period of time to the next. Each day can be like the previous day and, if not carefully observed, can seem like an exact repeat of what happened before. Yet one’s days are never exactly the same; there are always differences and changes. Sunrises and sunsets happen in the same way each day; it is easy to forget that each and every one is unique. The same is true of relationships, one’s thoughts, and the form of each flower. For me, this philosophical perspective is at the fissure between the tangible and the intangible in life and is reflected in all of the artworks that I create. As an artist I am visually intrigued with pattern-like images and groups of things. Flowers, stone walls, animal skins, insects, feathers, shells, pods, microscopic creatures and cross-sections, fractals, embroideries, lace, textiles wall paper, mosaics, quilts, snowflakes, waves, raindrops on still water, newly fallen leaves, and surveyors’ spray markings on roadways all fuel my visual imagination.
I like to create with paper because of its physical characteristics. It can be stiff yet pliable. It can absorb or repel dye. It can simultaneously be delicate and strong. It can be an object, can carry an image and can be an illusion. I experiment and undertake physical research into new variations of processes and with various colorants as a way of learning and finding unique imagery. Paper can be so many different things; it always yields something new to me. When I sew paper together it does not stretch or ravel and it has some 3-dimensionality. My work in paper is based on extensive art education and decades of experience in many fine arts processes, in fiber arts, surface design, in hand papermaking techniques, and in the art histories of the world.