Artist Statement
I think that every artist is born with a vocabulary. Mine includes color, line, and landscape. i grew up sewing and weaving and had three grandparents who tatted, embroidered, crocheted, and made handmade clothing and shoes. A textile quality is present in my work. And, I enjoy color juxtaposition and luminosity.
Growing up, there were no art education classes available. I learned about color mixing in the paint department at the local hardware store. Nicolaides was one of the first instruction books i used. My parents’ idea of a truly great artist was Norman Rockwell, and so I was weaned on the illustrationists. It’s interesting that without any frame of reference, i started exploring the abstract. The first painting I ever copied was one by Clyfford Still.
When i paint, i don’t start from a concept or an image (although imagery creeps in). I am not expressing my feelings. It’s a practise in mindfulness, starting with a color and a brush stroke, following each mark as in a conversation.
Someone asked me once, what was my intention. I said, to finish the painting I was working on and to start the next one. That was not what he wanted to hear, but that’s all i have. And, in the long run, it’s always about and in, the doing.
I think that every artist is born with a vocabulary. Mine includes color, line, and landscape. i grew up sewing and weaving and had three grandparents who tatted, embroidered, crocheted, and made handmade clothing and shoes. A textile quality is present in my work. And, I enjoy color juxtaposition and luminosity.
Growing up, there were no art education classes available. I learned about color mixing in the paint department at the local hardware store. Nicolaides was one of the first instruction books i used. My parents’ idea of a truly great artist was Norman Rockwell, and so I was weaned on the illustrationists. It’s interesting that without any frame of reference, i started exploring the abstract. The first painting I ever copied was one by Clyfford Still.
When i paint, i don’t start from a concept or an image (although imagery creeps in). I am not expressing my feelings. It’s a practise in mindfulness, starting with a color and a brush stroke, following each mark as in a conversation.
Someone asked me once, what was my intention. I said, to finish the painting I was working on and to start the next one. That was not what he wanted to hear, but that’s all i have. And, in the long run, it’s always about and in, the doing.
