Artist's Statement

I have always been drawn to the Cubist works of Georges Braque with their muted, neutral palettes, and their soft edges bumping up against hard ones; with their sense of movement, geometrics and fractured representation of reality. I use many of these elements in my own work, but for me, it’s more about reconstructing than deconstructing. Taking fragments and connecting them, no matter how disparate, to create meaning as part of an integrated whole. I bring a sense of nostalgia to my pieces through the use of vintage materials and soft colors. I use bits and scraps I have collected, and continue to collect, over many years and many journeys—each with its own small story. I add my own hand-made collage papers as well as paint and hand-drawn marks to fill out the spaces. Then, when each collection of images is complete, with all its layers and veils, it has its own unique tale to tell.

Background

I have been a professional designer for more than 30 years and my design sensibility and aesthetic strongly influence my interpretive art pieces. I love to shop garage sales and second-hand stores in the Pacific Northwest and on my frequent travels to France looking for old books and miscellaneous printed materials to use in my work. In addition to my fine art pieces, I adapt my mixed media collage techniques to create hand-made books, journals, specialty cards and commercial design projects. My work has been exhibited at various venues in the state of Oregon and nationally. 

Solo Exhibitions

2018 | Bits and Pieces II, South Stage Cellars, Jacksonville, OR
2018 | Collected Stories, Berryman Gallery, Medford, OR
2016 | Bits and Pieces, Deschutes Gallery, Medford, OR
2016 | Bits and Pieces, Rogue Gallery and Art Center, Medford, OR

Group Exhibitions

2022| Newport Paper and Book Arts Invitational, Newport Visual Arts Center, Newport, OR
2019 | Putting It Together 2, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2017 | Chasing Ghosts II, Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR
2017 | Newport Paper and Book Arts Instructors Show, Newport Visual Arts Center, Newport, OR
2016 | Newport Paper and Book Arts Instructors Show, Newport Visual Arts Center, Newport, OR