There is a latent or almost forgotten wisdom found inside that experience when we create. It’s a spiritual moment of connection, where we are inspired to let go and trust, listen and respond with awareness while being open to the transformative power that resides within the act and within ourselves.
Connection
It’s impossible to think of a singular moment in my life where connection was not at the center of it. I am physically connected to this planet by gravity and connected through our physical make up from the elements of water, earth, fire, air and ether. I am mentally and emotionally connected to my community as we listen and hold space for our shared experiences. I am spiritually connected to everything. There is not a moment in my life where I am not invited to connect to life around me. Paradoxically, I can easily disconnect myself from all of it in a matter of seconds and too often I am wandering around disconnected, ungrounded and caught in a narrative where at the center of disconnection I find my fears.
Process
Documentation allows me to capture and record the impermanent nature of my artwork.
Materials
I bring the smells, textures and natural raw materials from the surrounding land in northern California back into the studio, utilizing plant-inks, salts, honey, egg and clays. Employing my science background in horticulture, I experiment with the reactive components of the raw materials to one another. The materials’ alchemical interactions with each other on the working surface create an unpredictable reaction. I listen, observe and respond allowing for the unknown.
Photography
Photography allows me to connect, capture and be inspired by life around me. It is a great medium, allowing moments of inspiration and connection to guide my interpretation of the natural world and the people in it.