Artist Statement
This work is about my feelings for a place; it's moods, rhythms and seasons.
I find joy in discovering layers and nuance in familiar locations including Provincetown, MA and the offshore Maine coast. I often depict the intersections of sea and sky; birds span this territory and are a perennial inspiration. I have a diverse academic background in printmaking and drawing and regard watercolor as a form of play.
You may notice a variety of marks to assist in the effort to capture a sense of movement, viscerally holding that moment, to interpret it and commit to memory. I enjoy segments of mystery and strive to hold one's attention with the question 'what's going on?’ I feel that a drawing is particularly successful when a viewer is able to bring their own interpretation to an image.
I see captivating moments of beauty in the fresh spring courtship plumage of a common starling and in bones exposed after the winter’s storms. Studying a bird and its behavior can bring solace and a feeling of connection sometimes lost by living in a city. In some respects birds symbolize freedom, yet they are tied by biology and many are driven to exist in narrow margins among humans. These images represent the topography of a life and convey the tension between the concrete and ephemeral.
Boats and ocean trips have been a constant since I was a kid. A recent powerboat has expanded the experience of intimate interactions with humpbacks off Provincetown and puffins in Maine. The chain is connected to the years on the water, strength, history, loss and fragility are all wrapped into its depiction.
