Artist Statement
2007
Having been a painter for many years, I have gathered a lot of fodder for my art. Experiences and events, in retrospect, have given me some interesting points of view and the perfect vehicle to make my canvas a stage where I produce visual short stories.
My paintings are always of women, although they sometimes appear amorphous. Themes in my work vary from elation to dejection; camaraderie to isolation; haughtiness to meekness. Many of the figures are strangers to me, who have hijacked my imagination and left me puzzled and unable to explain the work in my own mind.
Sometimes I know the answers but am unwilling to clarify the mystery, preferring the viewer make up stories to suit herself (or himself, as the case may be). But often, they are the women of my own family - my mother and me, my sisters, my daughters, or women I relate to as “spirit sisters”.
Often the women in my paintings are vulnerable, struggling for air, existence, breaking away from an unacceptable situation. Some are so strong they could fairly transport themselves to another planet by merely thinking of it. Others reflect the sheer joy of being a happy woman.
The paintings are narrative, and can be interpreted in many different ways, depending upon the analyst.
2009
I paint because I cannot imagine my life without painting. I’m a figure painter because I’m intrigued by the shape and form of human creatures. Although they often appear amorphous, the figures are always women.
The figures in my paintings represent people I know or have pulled from my imagination. For years, I painted from life, but now I prefer to be in the studio alone, no model, no company. I invent these women, some with vulnerable personalities, some with the strength to transport them to another planet; but they all tell a story, sometimes in a language I don’t even understand.
For years I painted imagery which was easy, safe, and seemed to come off my brush like honey oozing from the hive.
Now, I’m making what I believe is a more courageous mark, full of renewed commitment. I’m failing as often as I meet with success, but those failures become the under painting or history for a new work.
I simply want to leave my mark.
