Education and Artist Statement
BA - Biology San Francisco State University 1979 MA - Microbiology San Francisco State University 1988 BFA - San Francisco Art Institute 2005 Artist Statement Since early 2007, I began to explore painting as a vehicle to translate the essence of a memory, a feeling, an experience, or a fantasy. I experience the memories or fantasies by creating a narrative, dramatizing actions, and incorporating movement during my process. By using repetitive brush strokes to convey for example a moment of contentment in the sun as a child (“A Grand Day”), a fantasy that goes horribly wrong (Fantasy A”), or the weight of humidity in a field of wild orchids (“Orchid”), my intent is to minimize extraneous brush strokes. Covering the canvas with beeswax mixed with oil paint in this repetitive manner generates spontaneous images that seem to result from my environment, my state of mind and my own limitations. Many layers of paint are stippled on to the canvas so that every layer is shown through in the finished piece. Every brush stroke represents the sounds, smells, tastes, and perhaps most importantly, the emotions of my vision. As I continue this body of work, I am finding that the process has taken on a collaborative spirit between me and the painting. The painting defines which colors to choose, when to stop, when to turn it 90 degrees. The work reveals my intimate and confidential details.