ARTIST Statement

Collage has always fascinated me. I work intuitively with materials that include remnants of everyday life from a pre-digital world, such as maps, sewing patterns, stamps, drawings, and photos.  My analog collage technique involves interacting with and transforming materials: cutting, arranging, and adhering fragments to supports that include watercolor paper and wood panels. Titles are often drawn from partially obscured text. In addition to acrylic paint, watercolor, pencil, ink, and pastels, I add color to my pieces with beads and cloth. Writing is part of my creative process, resulting in words embedded in the textured layers of my compositions.

As an avid reader and longtime educator, books figure significantly in my life. I often create my art within a book structure, either repurposing discarded books or working sequentially in bound sketchbooks with a variety of media and collage materials. Sometimes I cut pages from these sketchbooks. Moreover, the book structure provides a familiar starting point for my studio practice each day.

My mixed media work reflects a direct engagement with materials but more importantly is a response to what is happening in my life. I began incorporating illustrations from a medical textbook into my collages during the pandemic. The piece, you remember, explores the gradations of memory and the experience of someone close to me who has dementia. Images of beaded beehives reference the complexity of my husband’s beekeeping endeavors. The pieces have a surrealistic quality, shifting between abstracted and dreamlike images, allowing the viewer to embrace various interpretations and possibilities of meaning.