My work is mostly representative and nature is my main interested subject. Sometimes l venture into abstraction, especially in collage work.
How have you changed as an artist over the years?
I have switched my medium from Chinese painting to printmaking. The techniques are very different but my observation in nature expressed in my various work still remains.
What artists have influenced your work?
Henri Matisse, many Chinese and Japanese classic painters.
Do you have a favorite medium?
Woodcut is my favorite medium.
What does making art mean in your life?
It provides a channel to fulfill my creative urge. Teaching art classes also gives me feedback from students and my sense of being in a community.
I work in various mediums, choosing what I feel best suits the emotional connection I want my audience to experience when viewing my work.
How have you changed as an artist over the years?
I have transitioned from being a student to a professor and am now a full-time Artist. I have taught art at the college level for more than 30 years. I have been exposed to various art forms and feel grateful that I’ve had experiences engaging with my students as they learn to express themselves through art. At this point in my life, I am practicing what I’ve preached and engaging with life through an artist’s eyes.
What artists have influenced your work?
There are so many I couldn’t possibly name them all. I am influenced by art and life from many different perspectives. I have always been drawn to the drama and mystery in Caravaggio’s Baroque lighting. More recently, I have engaged with the women artists of the Abstract Expressionist phase of the mid-20th century, especially Joan Mitchell.
Do you have a favorite medium?
I enjoy choosing, using, and experimenting with a variety of mediums. I have been formally trained as a painter, printmaker, and photographer, and I often combine these mediums in my work. I have recently engaged with oil painting, which I have not practiced for decades, although I have taught painting for many years.
What does making art mean in your life?
Making art is ingrained in my soul. I choose to live artful life every day. Art, Life, Love…all merge together.
Anything else you think is important?
“Life is short”, as the saying goes. I believe life is an exciting journey filled with adventures to embrace. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. My philosophy is to live an authentic life and take care of ourselves and others as we can.
Art gives me a language to work through and express my ideas. A lot of my art is focused on social commentary and politics. I also like to use humor in my work. When people laugh, they’re more open to thinking about a different point of view.
How have you changed as an artist over the years?
When I was a student, I was very concerned with mastering the technical aspects of art. After school, I turned to photojournalism for a career. My creativity there was driven by capturing that decisive moment. Now that I’m older, I appreciate the process of art and letting it take me in directions I didn’t expect. I find that more and more, the concepts behind the art interest me more than the final piece itself.
What artists have influenced your work?
Laurie Anderson is one of my favorite artists. I just saw a new show by Anderson at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC. She is a singer and performance artist but has branched out into visual art. Anderson pushes the boundaries of how the viewer experiences and connects with art. One of the pieces that stuck with me in her new exhibit was a hologram of tiny people sharpening knives. Nick Cave’s Soundsuits also inspire me. His pieces blend sculpture and fashion. He says they evolved after the Rodney King beatings and have grown into vehicles for empowerment. It made me look at art and textiles in an entirely different way. His Soundsuits are like modern-day armor, and I was fascinated by what he chose to create these superhero costumes. Some are intricately beaded but then juxtapose a megaphone or an abacus.
Do you have a favorite medium?
I’m not tied to one medium. Different concepts require different art forms. Since turning more fully to art from photojournalism and becoming an Artworks Gallery member, I’ve enjoyed experimenting with different art forms. Since the pandemic hit, I’ve worked with fabric and photograms. And I’m excited about art that incorporates technology.
What does making art mean in your life?
It does a lot of things. At its broadest, making art gives me a voice to speak about what I care about in the world. It’s also a stress reliever and a way to indulge in some “me time.” Some of my art has helped me process some of the complex emotions from my time in photojournalism. I read about soldiers treated for PTSD who were assigned to write stories about their trauma but then rewrite the ending to what they wanted it to be. I decided to take some of my old photos of crime scenes and the Pentagon on 9/11 and envision what I wanted to happen. I called the show “Magical Thinking” because I created a better ending.
In addition to ceramics, I have begun to make books that are sculptures, and sew/embroider hangings.
What artists have influenced your work?
Ruth Duckworth, Mary Barringer, Eleanor Anderson, Mitzi Shewmake, Sumerian pre-historic art, Dan Essig, and Dolph Smith.
Do you have a favorite medium?
I enjoy paper/bookmaking, clay, and fiber.
What does making art mean in your life?
I feel very much at peace while creating art. Art gives me an outlet for my creative energy; it brings me joy; it helps me articulate my interests, my beliefs, and my aspirations.
I have been able to devote more time to my work. With every piece, I learn something new. And with every attempt I realize how much more there is to learn!
What artists have influenced your work?
In colored pencil, am inspired by the botanicals of Ann Swan, still-life work by Janie Gildow, and portraits by Ann Kullberg.
Do you have a favorite medium?
Colored pencil allows me to layer and blend colors with more control than watercolor or acrylics. A sharp point provides precise edges and detail. On the other hand, the pigments in the type of colored pencils I use do not erase. It’s difficult to hide a mistake.
What does making art mean in your life?
I feel very much at peace while creating art. It is basically a type of meditation I can turn to, an escape from the constant chatter of the outside world. It is a retreat into a space of quietness and peace. While creating, the only challenges I feel are self-imposed.
Innovative, bold, and creative is how I would describe my work. There is a saying that, “nothing is new under the sun” and I hold to that quote in my work, which means I don’t try to reinvent the wheel. What I do is use the tools at hand in a creative way and take risks with new methods or forms to create artwork from ordinary life and offer the viewer a different perspective of the subject to make the artwork extraordinary to them.
How have you changed as an artist over the years?
The biggest change I have experienced over the years has been becoming an artist. I spent my life perfecting the technical side of photography. I discovered that the art of photography is having something to say. The more I explored the narrative of a picture the more I wanted to try different methods to give a voice to the moment of the picture. Once I accepted the art of being a photographer/visual artist/creative I could accept the changes in my photographic style and vision which continue to evolve.
What artists have influenced your work?
So many artists have influenced my work. Artist Diego Velazquez’s intimate portrait touch and Caravaggio’s bold contrast in highlights and shadows. Photographers Bruce Davidson, Eugene Smith, Steve Curry, Eli Reed, and many others such as Anthony Barboza, Roy DeCarava, and Louis Draper.
Do you have a favorite medium?
My favorite medium to work with is photography. I love its flexibility in post-processing.
What does making art mean in your life?
Art is my voice to communicate to the world that I am here and that because I am here I have something to add to the other voices of humanity.
Anything else you think is important?
An unknown quote I like is “If art does not inspire you to change, move, live then it is not art.”
For this exhibition “Transitioning”, I would say the mixture of printmaking, painting, sculpture, and drawing is evidence that my work is changing or in transition. “Transitioning” is the name of the combined exhibition of my work and Alix Hitchcock’s work. I’ve taken one idea /inspiration and followed five pieces in whatever direction they have flowed. I started with making large monotypes of tree shapes which developed into acrylic paintings. In addition to those five color schemes, a sculptural painting developed as a result of my wishing to say and show more. After that, the people that I know seemed to “fit” into the category of those colors and forms. Then the unique characteristics of the colors, forms, and people reminded me of mythological characters. The correspondences of color, form, meaning, and myth must be the next step or transition I will take in future work.
How have you changed as an artist over the years?
As an artist over time, I have learned to follow my instincts in art-making. I have learned how to maintain a steady studio practice, with occasional forays into new techniques. I’ve become more involved in the process of making than ever. I trust the process of going in the inspired direction with a freer expression more than ever.
What artists have influenced your work?
So many artists have been influential! Rothko, Toulous Lautrec, Kahlo, Monet, Michelangelo, Kandinsky, Hundertwasser, Joseph Raphael, Morris Louis, Bill Viola are a few that come to mind right now. I could type names all day.
Do you have a favorite medium?
I must say that all mediums are interesting to me. Acrylic paints, colored pencils, Dura-lar as a painted sculptural surface, printmaking inks, different kinds of papers are the most recent ones that I’ve enjoyed
What does making art mean in your life?
Making art for me is meaningful as it provides an outlet for my need for visual expression. Making art keeps me inspired for living. If I don’t make art for a few days, I find myself less than happy and often become unwell physically. It is essential to living.
My art involves creating abstract compositions with images from natural objects (trees, plants) often combined with elements representing the human body. My mediums are ink, watercolor, and any drawing materials on paper, plus monotype printing with a press, or gelatin plate printing. I have also engaged in encaustic wax painting.
How have you changed as an artist over the years?
As an artist over time, I have learned to follow my instincts in art-making. I have learned how to maintain a steady studio practice, with occasional forays into new techniques or mediums at workshops. Teaching art has also helped me clarify for myself issues related to art-making. I do not work as large as I used to. And I still do not make art that is created for the sole purpose of being sellable to the public.
What artists have influenced your work?
I’m influenced by most of the artists of Art History, but especially Henri Matisse, Wassily Kandinsky, Arthur Dove, Isabel Bishop, Lee Krasner collages, Brice Marden line ptgs, Sean Scully stripe ptgs, Eastern calligraphic brushwork, etc.
Do you have a favorite medium?
I work in all types of mediums that revolve around two-dimensional art-making, including printmaking and encaustic wax.
What does making art mean in your life?
Making art for me is meaningful as it provides an outlet for my need for visual expression and experimentation combined with incorporating my search for understanding life.
