about the art

At the heart of all of my visual work is the desire to fully immerse myself and the viewer in the elusive magic of the natural world. Studying the behavior of light on a mountain slope or the way the ghost pipe seems to carry the weight of everything heavy on its slender shoulders helps me to make sense of the world and my place in it. This is where I feel at home.

Consider the Leaf, Study the Heron, a film by Nick and Chris Loud

Beginning with light washes of acrylic paint, I allow the canvas to reveal landscapes to me as I work. As horizons, hills, and mountains form themselves, visions of native flora emerge before them. Working with my vintage chainstitch machine I stitch directly on to the canvas, creating a tension between the fluid washes of paint and the bold thread on top of it. I aim to become each flower as I stitch it, understanding its mood and personality as a way to inform each bend and reach. The machine and I are dancing like this, an ancient choreography of life moving towards light. I feel each leaf and petal, each spine and root in the movement. In this way, I learn each landscape most intimately, as if I am crouched between the flowers myself, the light falling on me as well.