Statement

I create works out of natural and found materials, paper and cardboard. My pieces have ranged in size from minute to ceiling high, and in duration from one-day studio installations to assemblages left to weather in the woods. All involve the layering of shapes in space. I have long been a collector of twigs, root formations and pieces of bark. In this, the year of the pandemic, these accumulated fragments from the natural world provided the inspiration as well as the building material for “Voyage,” my latest series of sculptures. I started with a basic rule—use what is at hand. My next step was to have the pieces meet. See how they relate. Notice their commonalities and contrasts, and how they connect. Be open to serendipity. Echo the playful eye of nature.

In experimenting with different combinations of the material, I found pieces that wanted to be together. Then the shaping would start, a sculpture in the making. I love creating in this way, building with my hands. It’s a tactile as well as visual experience. And while my hands guided every step, they were always working in response to the material—each piece unique, each speaking for itself. As in nature, the juxtaposed elements in the sculptures are in delicate balance. For this moment, they offer a refuge. They connect me to better things. I take pleasure during my walks in collecting new elements to build with, and I have received gifts from family and friends—rough branches, tree stumps and smooth, sea-polished driftwood. The work has renewed my sense of play. And I’ve found that my rule, which at first applied only to the material, has taken on a larger and more philosophical meaning—use what is at hand, the time we have, the energy to build, and the freedom to create.