This all started at my childhood home on ten acres in Washington state where I grew up next to a creek, a handful of cows. We had a tool for everything and the only spirit is DIY! This translates nicely to this strong Portland culture of DIY, re-use, and recycle, and the place I now proudly call home!
Statement: I am a self-taught artist/maker who decided to go public in 2013. I’ve focused mostly on painting, and have been enamored and overwhelmed by the process- my technique continues to unfold and my voice is becoming more clear. For it all, I am both grateful and humbled by the load and the privilege of calling myself Artist. With my art, my intent is to elicit a sense of peace- a sense of belonging, or the feeling that you are home. All of my pieces are inspired by a photo that I’ve taken on some trip, or a clipping I saved from a magazine or newspaper. I’m drawn to the beaten but saturated colors and crisp forms that I see. My lines and colors are the voice in the manipulated landscapes I create. Wood is prepared by me. I paint on found plywood cast-offs. All boards are cut to size, and then sanded to remove dirt/film and coarseness. Next, I sketch, referring to photographs that I’ve taken. Then the REAL fun begins. First I sketch and then I etch. Colors are thoughtfully selected and painted with attention to saturation and stroke. My paints are old, recycled and mis-tints and colors are self-mixed and saved in jars. My lines are etched with a rotary tool and eventually filled with paint. Each color field is sanded and then re-applied with paint until a certain patina is reached, that for me, evokes the beauty of the Northwest.
THE PROCESS: Pieces are done on recycled plywood. Paints are old, recycled and mis-tints. Colors are self-mixed and saved in jars. Frames are milled and built by me. First I sketch and then I etch. Colors are then decided and added in layers between rounds of sanding and scraping to reveal a landscape that, for me, evokes the many beauties of the Northwest.
My tools: belt-sander, chop saw, table saw, pull saw, Dremel, planer, multi-tool cordless sander, nail gun, compound miter vice, various needle files, sandpaper and steel wool.