My work is inspired by the natural world. Its beauty and its cruelty. Its hostility and its hospitality. Its paradoxes and its contrasts. When looking at nature, one can't help but see its destruction at the hands of humans. It is virtually impossible to find unspoiled nature. Our planet's ecological balance has been severely compromised, and phenomena such as global warming and the deterioration of the ozone layer affect every inch of the planet. I feel strongly that each of us must use the tools at our disposal to preserve and restore the natural world. As an artist, I employ visual language to address these issues with the goal of awakening interest and inspiring my audience to action. To learn more about each series' subject in order to better understand and communicate its essence. Those who cannot be reached by depressing news about the dire state of our world may be reached by images of its beauty (Ansel Adams successfully showed this) and the threat imposed on it. Art has the power to make one see things in a new light. It allows us to develop a love for places and things that we would otherwise not have noticed, or thought of as ugly or boring. It helps us discover the beauty of the ocean floor, the dirt or alluvial mud that is bog, the bark of a tree
To create the oil paintings, I start by gessoeing heavy rag paper on both sides. Then I dry it in blotters, creating a very flat surface which will take a lot of abuse. Beginning with an under painting of a fairly brilliant color, I build textures and colors slowly, using both subtractive and additive processes. I apply paint with stencils (lace, Japanese papers, found objects), stamps (hand-cut linoleum blocks and commercially made patterns) and create textures by applying paint both with a brush and with brayers. Of course, being oil paint, each layer must dry several days before I can work on the piece again so I tend to have many pieces going on in the studio at one time. As in traditional monoprint, what is revealed in the subtractive process often becomes the most exciting and unique aspect of the piece. Depending on the piece I might choose to frame it under glass or attach it to a wood panel and show it unframed. Larger paintings I work directly on the wood panel, building it up in the same layers and varnishing the finished painting
