I was born in Brooklyn, New York. My parents didn’t really encourage me to pursue being an artist, but I ignored them and continued in my practice of making art. I have studied photography, drawing, ceramics and painting. Encaustic is the perfect medium for me, creating the translucent layers that allow me to build my work; it serves as the conduit that carries my ideas.
Over the years I have developed a system for painting. This system allows me to have a foundation to begin and then gives me the freedom to veer off in new and exciting directions.
I wake up early each day wanting to draw, sketching out ideas, creating as many variations as I can think of before I begin to paint. Hundreds of sketchbooks are filled with more ideas than I could ever realize; it gives me a quick way to see an idea. As I paint, I can choose elements of the drawing, sometimes combining these aspects.
My work follows how I feel, investigating the triggers that initiate memory and the relationships I have with others, expose feelings are expressed in my work.
I am affected by the changing characteristics of spaces and streets. As I walk around, I observe the world, which gives me random shapes and shadows that speak to me. Seeing art in galleries and museums inspires me as an artist. I read everything I can find, watch videos, talk about art, think about art; it is my purpose in life.
The newest series, Dwelling, is somewhat structured, and has boundaries that surround shapes that overlap and line up to the edges. I add color, using it innately, choosing ones that correspond to how I feel each day. Yellows, pinks, greens have enhanced my work of late.
I subtract, reduce and distill my concept until it reaches its simplest form, yet maintain the complexity of visual surface and depth.
“Art is a concrete result of the artist’s subtle feelings” Agnes Martin