Painting is my voice when I feel unable to speak. My work is an expression of personal experiences that have devastated, antagonized, and encouraged me.

In my most recent bodies of work, I have been exploring the concept of human connections, both on a personal level as well as in our society in general. A person learns so much about social interaction from how they were raised. Ideas about social norms are shaped depending on so many factors. Physical attention, morals and values, along with parental interaction affect how one copes with life. These early lessons shape all future relationships and influence how a person will act and react throughout their lifetime.

Along with these formative lessons, culture also influences how we interact with one another. I am fascinated by the sense of detachment in the way we interact as a society. In so many ways, we are moving farther and farther from one another. We send emails instead of speaking, we text someone before we will pick up the phone and call. It seems as though everyone wants to be heard, but no one is willing to listen. We are all standing side by side but just out of each other’s reach.

Over the past few years, my paintings have evolved from extremely figurative to non-representational. I am fascinated by simple yet beautiful forms, especially those found in nature. The use of these natural forms is an effective vessel to convey my concept of human connection. By abstracting a simple shape, I am able to create complexity and mood through color, texture and light. The use of abstracted forms also allows the viewer to connect with the work without preconceptions.

Along with exploring the concept of human connections and social norms within my abstract work, I have also become fascinated with these concepts in relation to the perception of the wife and mother in our society. Although a woman’s place has advanced tremendously, there are still expectations and roles women fall into. These ideas are found in books dating back as far as the 1920’s which express certain views on marriage and family. By taking found books and altering them, I have been exploring this dichotomy between the classical and modern ideas of marriage and women’s place in society. By adding to and removing portions of these books, I force the viewer to look at these ideas and assess how little or how much has changed over the past 90 years.