What’s brewing in my mind.

Animals, and sometimes mythological creatures help me explore human emotion and experiences—humor, anger, tranquility, romance, fear. I think their faces and body language speak more clearly and express emotions better than our own. I’m also interested in animals themselves, especially those closely related to us and those that live amongst us, often almost invisibly. Bringing their experiences—really not so different from our own—out in the open is also part of my work.

I became an artist because making art is so enjoyable. I love the particular physical processes involved in different mediums. The repetition and rhythm of making marks is meditative, but also very physical, and even risky—starting a new piece is a commitment to both the subject and the materials that will last weeks or months. I relish the handwork in each piece. I want people looking at my art to first be amused by it, then amazed by the execution, and then to find in it a story, maybe partly mine, partly one of their own making.

Drawing has been central to my practice, but I’ve usually shown some sculpture or textile pieces alongside my drawings. Recently I’ve been focussing more on textiles (using traditional rug hooking and tapestry weaving techniques) and on ceramics. They don’t allow for the detail achievable with graphite on paper, so color, texture and three-dimensional form have become new focuses, simultaneous with a desire for my work to be “louder” and to investigate a bit more specifically the female experience.