In my current work, I use clay, acrylics, and texture-building media to bring to life imagery and inspiration I see in the world, especially in nature, and relating it to my own inner landscape. I am exploring intuitive and experimental painting, and returning to my roots in ceramics to push my own boundaries of what I thought possible.
During my under-graduate studies at Elizabethtown College, I minored in fine arts with a concentration in ceramics. My special interest in ceramics in those years was teapots, combining thrown and hand-built forms into a cohesive, sculptural piece within the structure of the teapot. Bringing this background to my current work, I use air-dry clay to sculpt aspects of the piece, sand and carve them further, attach them to the board or canvas, and incorporate them into the acrylic painting. I have also begun sculptural hand-built clay pieces that play on the form of a mask, with abstract composition. This developed as I worked on abstract acrylic exercises, feeling through the process of making the marks, shapes, and textures that wanted to emerge. Next, I plan to further my study of glazing techniques in order to build my repertoire of how to allow the expression of these pieces to come through.
I want to investigate the magic and connections that I see and feel in nature, life and human beauty through my work, and in doing so, express and heal myself and connect with others.
I have been a life-long artist, at times in the margins, as I pursued a career in occupational therapy and visual rehabilitation optometry. Over time, I plan to integrate my visual studies into my art, exploring the unique ways each of us see the world. I am interested in both the singular and the universal aspects of one’s point of view through a unique set of visual conditions, in the context of physical, emotional, and cultural individuality. For now, I revel in beginning again. I am exhilarated and humbled to be stepping back into this gorgeous and terrifying world of artistic creation.