ARTIST STATEMENT
I have loved making art from a very early age either playing with yarn, fabric, stitchery or glass beads. By the time I became an adult, I began creating in a studio setting, went to art school, taught art, and wrote about it. My earliest non-representational work was two- dimensional where I investigated the relationship of positive and negative space on canvas and paper, experimented with color and many different techniques. Later I explored more figurative shapes concerning myself with the exaggeration of the human condition in personal and cross-cultural narratives, speaking about communication or the lack thereof as well as social and political issues like poverty and vulnerability. Most of these mixed- media series incorporated additives such as gels, mesh, paper, old canvas pieces to found objects with highly charged marks, multiple layers of paint, and rough textures indicative of my emotions.
I am now concentrating on three-dimensional constructions, continuing to incorporate non-traditional materials such as plastic, paper, steel, wood, and rubber while exploring issues of vulnerability and communication. I combine rubber with a wooden armature to inspire a series of hybrid forms. Originally exploring the cultural dualism between society and politics, my work continues to involve dualism by drawing the viewer into the work with humor while subtlety creating dichotomies and oppositions of life beneath the surface.
Résumé
EDUCATION
Santa Fe Community College, Santa Fe, NM
Ph. D. - New York University, New York, NY
M.A. - C. W. Post Center, Long Island University, Greenvale, NY
B.A. - Queens College, Flushing, NY
AWARDS
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Santa Fe Community College, Santa Fe, NM
Scholarship Award, New York University, New York, NY
EXHIBITIONS
Santa Fe Community College, Juried Student Exhibit, Santa Fe, NM, 2011
Center for Contemporary Art, "Collect Ten," Santa Fe, NM, 2011
Selby Fleetwood Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, Group Exhibit, 2005-2006
Anne Irwin Fine Art, Atlanta, GA, Group Exhibit, 20066-2008
LewAllen Contemporary, 8th Annual FOCA Juried Exhibit, Santa Fe, NM, 2005
Palace of the Governors, Juried Book Arts Show, Santa Fe, NM, 2004-2006
LewAllen Contemporary, 7th Annual FOCA Juried Exhibit, Santa Fe, NM, 2004
Center for Contemporary Art, “Collect: Inside 8," Group Exhibit, Santa Fe, NM, 2003
El Gancho, Santa Fe, NM, 2002
Center for Contemporary Art, “Collect,” Group Exhibit, Santa Fe, NM, 2002
LewAllen Contemporary, 5th Annual FOCA Juried Exhibit, Santa Fe, NM, 2002
Border’s Books, Santa Fe, NM, 2001
C.W. Post Center, Long Island University, Greenvale, NY, Solo Exhibit, 1984
Fine Arts Museum of Long Island, Hempstead, NY, Juried Exhibit, 1983
Huntington Township Art League, Group Exhibit, Huntington, NY
Syosset Public Library, Solo Exhibit, Syosset, NY
WORK IN COLLECTIONS
Private Collections
PUBLICATIONS
American Art Collector, 2006
The New Mexican Venue North, 2002