This project is an examination of my own media habits, from the American news I ceaselessly read on my phone, to the arguments on Facebook about guns, abortion, racism, Donald Trump’s tweets, and everything else igniting the online world among Americans right now. It is also an attempt to “collage” this exposure.
By combining language and images filtered from the online media I consume, I am calling attention to the statements my brain grabs onto and refuses to release. I am asking the viewer to consider these pieces in a context outside of the media.
To display the work, I chose to use a rotary drying rack in the tradition of Marcel Duchamp’s “Readymades” but also thinking about the connotations of the term “cycle” to describe the news and the idea of laundry. In that sense, I am cleaning these ideas up and cleansing myself of the anxiety and toxicity I develop from engaging with all this on social media and news sites.
My main artistic influences in this project are Barbara Kruger and Jenny Holzer. I have also been influenced by the many feminist artists who, since the 1970s, have used embroidery to disrupt narratives, including Judy Chicago and others.
The use of embroidery in conceptual and political art is in itself a statement because it challenges the traditional gender roles associated with what was considered a “lesser,” “feminine” craft. However, as Roszika Parker states in The Subversive Stitch, “Quiet strength need not be mistaken for useless vulnerability.” For me, the choice to use embroidery is also about slowing the process of digesting all this news down. It is a reaction against the fast torrent of information coming at us all the time, especially with regards to the political turmoil in the United States since our 2016 presidential election.
2018, Fabric transfer, fabric scraps, and embroidery on muslin, 7 x 7 inches.
2018, fabric scraps, machine stitching, and hand embroidery on muslin, 10 x 10 inches.
2018, fabric scraps, machine stitching, and hand embroidery on muslin backing, 10 x 10 inches.
2018, hand embroidery on rust-dyed cotton, 7 x 7 inches.
2018, fabric transfer, fabric scraps, hand embroidery, hand beading on muslin, 7 x 7 inches.
2018, hand embroidery on vintage fabric, 7 x 7 inches
2018, fabric dyed with indigo ink and rust, hand embroidery, 10 x 10 inches
2019, Acrylic and Spray Paint on Canvas, 70 x 70 cm
2020, Acrylic Paint and Spray Paint on Canvas, 26 x 24 inches
2020, Oil on Canvas 20 x 16 Inches
2019, Acrylic and Spray Paint on Canvas, 60 x 80 cm.
2019, 18 x 24 inches, Oil on Canvas
2019, Acrylic, Spray Paint, and Oil Pastel on Canvas, 100 x 100 cm
2018, Mixed Media and Collage on Paper, 30 x 40 cm
2018, Mixed Media and Torn Paper Collage, 30 x 40 cm
2019, Mixed Media Collage on Paper, 30 x 40 cm.
2019, Mixed Media Collage, 30 x 40 cm
2019, Mixed Media Collage, 30 x 40 cm
Mixed Media, 12 x 16 inches, 2017
Mixed Media Collage, 6 x 8 inches, 2017
Mixed Media, 12 x 16 inches, 2017
Mixed Media, 12 x 16 inches, 2017
Mixed Media, 12 x 16 inches, 2018
Mixed Media, 6 x 8 inches, 2017
Mixed Media, 4 x 6 inches, 2017
These come from a daily project I began in early 2017. Each piece must be abstract and incorporate pieces of earlier works. The process imitates the growth of the individual. As we live our lives, we experience events that break apart notions we held at earlier stages, effectively deconstructing and reconstructing the personality in subtle ways.
As time has gone on, this series has evolved into more complex images, obtained with more ease, with the artistic process mirroring the results of personal growth and spiritual integration.
2018, Mixed Media on Paper, 30 x 40 cm
Mixed Media on Synthetic Paper, 2017, 30 x 40 cm
Mixed Media, Collage, and Embroidery on Paper, 2017, 30 x 40 cm
Watercolor, Watercolor Pencils, Gouache, Acrylic Paint, Acrylic Ink, Markers, Gouache, Embroidery Floss, 11.8 x 15.7
Watercolor, gouache, acrylic watercolor, watercolor pencils, glitter, torn paper, embroidery floss, 4.5 x 4.5
Watercolor, Gouache, Acrylic, Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Glitter, Embroidery Floss, 6.25 x 9.5
Watercolor, Watercolor Pencils, Acrylic Ink, Markers, Gouache, Glitter, Embroidery Floss, 6.25 x 9.5
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 11.8 x 15.7 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 6.25 x 9.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 12.5 x 9.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Archival Glue on Paper, 6.25 x 9.5
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 11.8 x 15.7 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 11.8 x 15.7 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 12.5 x 9.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 6.5 x 9.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 9.5 x 12.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 6.25 x 9.5 inches
Watercolor pencils, acrylic ink, gouache, acrylic watercolor on paper, 9.5 x 12.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 9.5 x 12.5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Markers, Watercolor Pencils, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 9.5 x 12.5
2017, India Ink, Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Gouache, Torn Paper, PVA glue on Paper, 30 x 40
2017, India Ink, Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Gouache, Torn Paper, PVA glue on Paper, 30 x 40 inches
2017, India Ink, Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Gouache, Torn Paper, PVA glue on Paper, 30 x 40
This series of paintings and drawings was shown at Unterhammer im Karlstal in Rhineland-Pfalz, Germany in May 2016. Unterhammer is a former ironworks and foundry in a beautiful, preserved forested valley. Two artists, myself and Astrid Blasberg of Frankfurt, created a series of works reflecting the history and environment of this place. Also at play is the dialogue between an American ex-patriot (myself) encountering a foreign environment and an established German artist encountering the same landscape.
The works shown here were inspired by my lifelong love affair with science fiction and Star Trek. The deaths of Leonard Nimoy and David Bowie prompted a period of exploration into these otherworldly moonscapes and galactic scenes. However, it’s not just about fantasy intergalactic travel. These paintings also explore inner depths.
Acrylic and Medium on Canvas, 20 x 20 inches
Acrylic on Canvas, 18 x 24 inches
Acrylic and medium on canvas, 18 x 24 inches
Acrylic on Canvas, 24 x 24 inches
Watercolor, Gouache on Paper, 6 x 6 inches
Watercolor, Gouache, Ink, Pencil, 6 x 6 inches
Acrylic on Canvas, 8 x 8 inches
Acrylic, Medium, Oil Pastels on Canvas, 19.5 x 19.5 inches
Acrylic and Medium on Canvas, 6 x 6 inches
Watercolor Pencils, Watercolors, Gouache, Paper, Airdry Clay, Acrylic Paint, 11.8 x 15.7 inches
Acrylic Ink, Watercolor Pencils, Markers, Acrylic Watercolors, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 6.5 x 9.5 inches
Watercolors, Watercolor Pencils, Gouache, Archival Glue on Paper, 6.25 x 9.5 inches
Watercolor, Watercolor Pencils, Gouache on Paper, 5 x 5 inches
Acrylic Ink, Indigo Ink, Archival Glue on Paper, 4 x 4 inches
Watercolor, Watercolor Pencil, Gouache, Torn Paper, 10 1/4 x 6 3/8 inches
