My art practice is how I explore my relationship with Nature. Hiking is part of my practice. An art residency at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon started me on this path. I hike my local canyons and mountains regularly as well as National Parks and State Parks of the west. Hiking connects me to the physical world so I can remember the feel of the steepness of a hill, the softness of moist land, the hard heel strike of Sierra rock when I go into my studio to create. I follow my curiosity down rabbit hole research of botany and geology. The hiking brings me joy, peace, excitement, and awe. My art is a way to invest in my relationship with Nature.
I work from memory. It is often how a relationship goes - we spend time with a friend and then later when they are gone, we go over a conversation, remember a smile, a glance, remember how he made us laugh. We can recognize a friend from far away by a gait, a gesture. Our relationships become meaningful and the gesture reminds us of the meaning. I do the same with landscapes. I visit in multiple seasons. I walk in the rain and in the heat. Later I think back to how the land affected me, how I would recognize it again. Memory is how we construct our worlds. So I use memory to construct my art about place.
My technique of Paper Tapestry keeps me in the physical world of hiking. I first draw my intentions for an art piece. I used to weave the layers I drew as an exploration of interconnectedness. I now carve the substrate of my work to mimic carving of the land by water, wind and time. It is my way of trying to understand change within my short lifetime and outside of it in geologic time. I cut and carve foam board with a mat knife. I cut rocks, gullies, and the bark of trees. All of the parts of Nature I have felt with my feet, my hands, my eyes, I trace with my knife. And then I go to my stacks of colored paper and find the colors that stay in my head after a hike. I glue the paper to the foam board pieces I have cut and carved. Finally, I fit all of the pieces together, reassembling the world I saw, the world I remember, the world I imagine.
Studio
I work in my home studio in San Diego. Come visit me! I am always working on a new piece and love to share the process, my papers and my hiking stories. I am always looking for new places to explore so let me know your favorites! You might find them in new pieces.
Juried Shows and Gallery shows
Experiencing Sense of Place Along the Coast to Crest Trail, Encinitas Community Center May 1 - August 31, 2026
Santa Ysabel Art Gallery, San Diego River Artist Alliance June 1 - July 6, 2026
Visions Museum of Textile Art, Feb - June 2026
Mountains to the Sea, San Diego River Artist Alliance at Gallery 21 October 2023 - November 2023.
Carlsbad Library, November 15 - January 25, 2023, Carlsbad, CA
Natural Shift, October 1 -31, 2020, The Studio Door, San Diego CA
Small Image Show, February 2020, Gallery 21, San Diego, CA
Art Telling. It Starts with a word..” September 2019, Mission Trails Visitor Center, San Diego CA
Small Image Show, February 2019, Gallery 21, San Diego, CA
Front Porch Gallery Juried Show August 2019, Front Porch Gallery, Carlsbad, CA
Art Telling: Where We Are, November 11 - January 6, 2017, Front Porch Gallery, Carlsbad, CA
Small Image Show, January 24 - February 29, 2016. Gallery 21, Spanish Village Art Center, San Diego, CA
"Art Telling. It starts with a word..." July 14 - August 8, 2015 Mission Trails Visitors Center, San Diego, CA
"Art....It's Elemental" March 23 - April 19, 2015, Gallery 21, Spanish Village Art Center, San Diego, CA
Small Image Show, January 23 - February 30, 2014, Gallery 21, Spanish Village Art Center, San Diego, CA
"Nature's Inspirations" June 14 - July 8, 2013 Mission Trails Visitors Center, San Diego, CA
Small Image Show, January 23 - February 30, 2013, Gallery 21, Spanish Village Art Center, San Diego, CA
Coal Gallery Open Show, November 2012, Carlsbad, CA
Residencies
Volcan Mountain Residency 2023
North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park September 10 - August 3, 2014
Awards
Best in Show Mixed Media San Diego Festival of the Arts 2021, San Diego, CA
Honorable Mention Small Image Show, February 2019 Gallery 21, San Diego, CA
Best in Show The Studio Door Crow Show January 2018, San Diego, CA
Best in Show Mixed Media, October 2016, La Jolla Art and Wine Festival
Featured Artist, Mission Federal Art Walk 2015, San Diego, CA
Best in Show, Best in Show Fiber, October 2014, La Jolla Art and Wine Festival
Best in Show - Fiber, June 2014, La Jolla Festival of the Arts
Featured Artist, Coronado Art Walk 2013
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