self portrait
Artist Statement
Since my childhood, I have always felt a kinship with nature, and whether ambling through the rolling hills of Pennsylvania,or exploring the snowy crags of New Zealand, the outdoors has always been welcome and familiar terrain. I began my artistic journey painting plein air landscapes, and for decades this was how I connected with and depicted natural scenery. In my current work, I spontaneously and intuitively respond to the environment using pastel on paper, which has yielded two drawing series, In Harmony and Nature’s Exuberance.
In Harmony was inspired by a synchronistic event while walking through the Arizona desert. Marveling at the warm radiant sunset of gold, salmon, pink, and purple, I saw my own shadow stretched along the desert floor, woven in with the light and shadows and the flora and fauna—in that moment, I overwhelmingly felt my oneness with nature. The series is abstract, focused on various portions of the landscape intermingled with my own shadow.
Nature’s Exuberance documents the intensity and drama of landscapes from my travels throughout the United States and abroad. In these drawings I use saturated colors and strong contrast to express the mystical and sublime. Focusing on immensity, splendor, and abundance, I want to evoke a feeling of jubilance and replicate nature’s profound impact on the human spirit.