Artist Statement

I have worked with clay for many years. I have used different shaping techniques, fired it to high temperatures, smoldered it, smoked it, fumed it, put it in cold water, dry leaves and wood chips. I have studied the mysteries of glaze chemistry and kiln building.

The forms of my ceramic pieces were more important to me than the glazes. Black or white satin glazes covered the forms Iike skin, tempting to the touch. Flowing, elegant lines, organic shapes and always the possibility for growth and change were visible in my work. I loved to use gold accents, to reflect the light and give a hint of celebration.

I have arrived at a calm point.

Now, when it comes to color….. I paint.

I have boxes of oil pastels that I treasure. When I look at a landscape or the markings on an animal, I say to myself   " I have that color, I can mix that color ".

I started painting a few years ago and it is still new to me. I feel playful about it and surprises are welcome. I love the immediacy of painting, the ability to change it at any point and time.

Roughly textured linen canvases pick up the oil pastels in a sensuous way that pleases me. And a brush dipped in balsam oil can make them translucent and flow.

I do not analyze the sources of my images. I just let them appear and settle on my canvas

Bones, beetles and seeds.