One of my clearest memories of youth was my rush of emotion as a foreign student. The thrill wasn’t academic but a kaleidoscope of edgy style in my adopted country. This was Spain long ago and everywhere I looked I saw women in long slinky skirts and maxi sweaters. The men wore tinted glasses and smart leather boots and in the smoky half-light of winter, it all seemed like film noir. I never stopped traveling and searching after that day. Searching for the discovery of something unimaginable.
As a young person, I had an affinity for textile arts, which led to a career in the New York fashion industry. I am curious to know how things are made and I immersed myself in knit design, patternmaking, textile painting, color correction and print design.
As my design work advanced, I saw my concern shift toward fine art and found that it mattered to me more than fashion. I discovered life drawing and the means to communicate gesture and expression. Wanting to know more about these mysteries led me to écorché studies and the process of three-dimensional art.
I left my design career and entered the world of fine art as a painter. Today my work involves fabric and hand built armature. Influences are numerous and come from sources that strike me as vulnerable and off guard. Paul Klee’s puppets, James Castle’s assemblage, Deborah Butterfield’s horses, to name a few. I appreciate their economy of style and improvisation.