Artist Statement
My paintings spring from glimpses of everyday life. I tell stories that might be. I’m a colorist and a choreographer of nuances, weaving together observation, memories and suggestion, often with an added touch of whimsy.
Background
I’ve lived for extended periods in Italy, England and Japan, and recently moved to Asheville, North Carolina, from coastal Maine. Each of these unique cultures has influenced and contributed to my artistic vision and growth. My university training was in non-objective abstract art. After graduation, I felt the need to incorporate representational elements in my work. I was living in Naples, Italy, and my years there allowed me repeated access to some of the greatest museums in the world. This served as my own self-guided MFA program, and is an experience for which I am extremely grateful. I moved into the watercolor medium at that time, when my children were small, and I continued to work in it exclusively for the next 10 years. This was followed by a ten-year period of working exclusively in pastels, which I fell in love with while living in England. Ultimately, I took up oils, which opened a Pandora’s box of technical tricks, surprises, and fun in the studio.
Working Process
My work starts with color. Color in art is as seasoning in food - it’s the flavor that makes the dish. So, first, I decide ‘what I’m hungry for,’ and I grab tubes of paint that seem to fit that flavor/color profile. They are never the same from painting to painting, or even from day to day within the same painting. The subject evolves from color shifts, lines, smudges and gestural brushwork, often with the texture of the paint itself serving as the source of my inspiration. Moving from thin, transparent washes, reminiscent of my watercolor days, to opaque strokes of thick impasto paint, reminiscent of my work in pastels, the variations of my paint handling are of equal importance to the light and the subjects I present. Everything works together to weave a tapestry of color with added elements of recognition and surprise.