Artist Statement

    In my work, I celebrate presence. I address the fragility of nature, spirituality and humanity. These themes are often combined to speak to the viewer on several levels. The patterned background represents unexamined aspects of our cultures, as well as the many layers of self, accumulated from growth and evolution. It conveys the message that “what is underneath is part of the whole”.

     Growing up in rural Appalachia, I played outside in my special, wooded place. Birds were such a part of my life, they could have been family. At night, my sister and I would lie in the grass, on a quilt and see who could call a Bob White closer.

     The need to earn a living took me out of that place and into a much more populated one. The birds were ghosts. This new habitat could not support what it should have. For the first time, I saw the conflict between the need for a tree versus the greed for pavement.

     I am not sure that a painting will call someone’s attention to the need to preserve land. I believe that telling a story re-animates the subject. My hope is that I can bring focus back to simple pleasures that cost us nothing but consideration and wiser choices.