Artist Statement
So much of what once seemed constant in life is changing more quickly than ever. In this time of personal, societal and environmental turmoil, I paint from a sense that nothing is certain.
I begin random mark-making by collecting paint on gloved fingers, then drawing, dragging, smearing it on canvas. Using color intensely or not much at all; making lines define shapes or vice versa; sometimes adding and subtracting, making and destroying; picking up from somewhere in the past or jumping into something totally different.
When process resolves into composition, I search for the language of this particular work by identifying indications of its direction in ghostly shapes, faint or disconnected lines, and emerging color combinations, then use these to define it, while still trying to preserve the ambiguity because that is part of the painting’s nature.
How does it feel to let go in this way? Each day I ask for the courage and strength to see clearly and be with things as they are. I don't need to resist the ever-changing influences that give rise to the different images that emerge, but let them flow through. The act of accepting what comes and being with it in the present moment has brought solace where it is much needed in order to live with uncertainty in this world now.
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