Sitting at my sewing machine, I am calmed by its sound. It is a reassuring sound from my distant past. My mother supported the family with a machine like this, so it is not coincidental that I have come to be sitting here. Having spent most of my life painting on canvas, I have come to understand that canvas is fabric.
I have added sewing to my paints and brushes. sewing the paintings into 3-dimensioal reliefs; drawing onto them with thread. Working in a series around a central concept, I paint, cut, draw and sew using darts, tucks, knots and shirring to give them structure. They are freed from stretchers.
Using traditional women's techniques, I experience a physical closeness with my materials bringing me closer to the creative process. My mind is filled with ideas and images from the physical universe to the human experience which fuel my work.
My work has been described as;
" Textural Abstractions" Rose Mancuso, Curator
"The viewer is lured into the artist's fantasy world. Colors are sensuous, shapes musical,billowing into luminous space." Dr. Vivienne Thaul Wechter, Curator
"The immense use of color displayed.....is nothing short of resplendent" Krista Rupe, Writer
As I paint and sew, I think of those in the past and present who clothe and support so many.