Since a small girl I have always been engrossed with beauty and nature. I have always examined the details of natural things, the texture of a rock, the color shades in a sunset, the way the wind feels on my skin... Running, Walking or driving I see in contextual spaces and color. It is the intimate connection between the mind and our primal animal nature that I explore in my art.
There is a tension between what my unconscious mind is seeing and painting and what my conscious mind is trying to control. It is this tension, which reflects the struggle of the human spirit to find beauty and purpose between dreams and body, conscious space and unconscious space, which inspires my work.
Bold color thrills me – subtle color and nuance draw me in to see what is there. I use symbols that express reality and fantasy which come together to tell a story of human nature, of our perfection and imperfections My intention has been to create works that are both beautiful and respect the viewer's intelligence. By presenting images and situations where immediate recognition and cursory viewing are insufficient to engage with the visual material. The approach is to create art with a greater intensity, saturation and luster in colors not generally seen on canvas.
Paintings articulate experiences of psychoanalytic concepts as they relate to the process of creating art. I feel that art is therapy. It shows me a visual reflection of what happens inside my mind. I am able to sort out my thoughts and feelings through symbols and colors. My goal is for these symbols and colors to somehow touch and inspire the lives of people who are drawn to my paintings. I believe that art, like music has the ability to heal through vibration of colors rather than sounds. Beauty is constantly staring us in the face, it takes being present to recognize it.
BIO
EDUCATION
AA in Fine Art 1987-1989 Daytona Beach Community College, Daytona Beach, Florida
Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and Marketing minor in Art 1990-1992. Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
MBSR in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction 2015-2018 University of Massachusetts Medical School, Oasis Institute
Bachelor of Social Work- University of North Carolina 2020
Masters in Social work - University of North Carolina
Education/Artist Training
Contemporary Drawing and Painting 1995 CENTRAL ST MARTINS COLLEGE OF ARTS & DESIGN, UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS LONDON, ENGLAND
Figure Drawing with Pastels 1995. CENTRAL ST MARTINS COLLEGE OF ARTS & DESIGN, UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS LONDON, ENGLAND
Live Model Figure Drawing Intermediate 1996 CENTRAL ST MARTINS COLLEGE OF ARTS & DESIGN, UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS LONDON, ENGLAND
Live Model Figure Drawing Advanced 1997 GREENWICH COMMUNITY COLLEGE, LONDON, ENGLAND
Exhibitions
WAA Spring Art Show Wilmington, NC April 2012
Candid Gallery, Islington, London, England, February 1997
Candid Gallery, Islington, London, England, February 1998
ACRO Madrid Contemporary Show, Madrid, Spain 1999
swiss expo contemporary exhibit - 2017
Art of the State - North Carolina, art of the state 2019
ARTBOX.PROJECT Zürich 1.0 - Zurich 2019
art of the state, Cameron art museum 2022
Commissions
The Royal Ticket, 60x60 Oil on Canvas 1998. Matt Darko, London, England
Hydro Life, 24x36, Oil on Canvas 2000, Juan Garcia, private collection, Tenerife, Spain
Too Many Legs, 36x48, Oil on Canvas, Tony Martin, Private Collection, LA, California, USA
CONTRARY; 2015 OIL, RESIN, GLUE, METALLIC FLAKES, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS 24X30 private collection Montreal, Canada
Artist Residency
Altos De Chevon, La Romana, Dominican Republic 1989
Professional Memberships
Wilmington Art Association
WRAR
nASW
