ARTIST STATEMENT

Life is challenging, as my personal life experiences and work as a psychotherapist attest.  An inspiration for me is the strength and resilience of the human spirit, and the drive to overcome obstacles and make change.  I’m fascinated by the unconscious and have always been drawn to art that feels raw and expressive, from the abstract expressionists to the art of Africa and indigenous people of Australia and the Americas.  Through the language of abstraction I’m most able to explore and express my ideas and emotions.

I work intuitively using acrylic and house paint, oil sticks, gesso, graphite, charcoal, newspapers, old documents, artwork and other raw materials that engage me. My process involves creating multiple layers of paint and collage, extensive mark-making, and scratching into and eroding the surface with a variety of tools.  In the layering process, many sections of a painting are covered over, yet they still exist.  I can’t erase what has happened to me or what has happened in the world, but I can reframe the experience to something that speaks meaningfully now and brings a moment of resolution, hope, possibility and even joy.

My paintings invite the viewer to share and experience my creative journey — a quest to make peace with the chaos and complexity of being human — and feel a sense of resolution, even if the resolution is momentary.