Artist Statement

 

 

Making art involves a delicate process of patience and intuition. When I make sculpture, I listen to my thoughts and feelings. This makes my work very personal. My work deals with the similarities between different industries and their relationship with nature.   I feel a very strong spiritual connection between the materials that I use and the animals that I reference. I often use humor and color to help lighten the content and tone of my work. I do this by using colorful fabrics and quirky animals. Doing this has helped me develop new methods of working with materials.

 

As a third generation welder and seamstress, I am fascinated with the welding and fashion industries. I see many similarities in the way that these products are produced and used. I use the raw masculine qualities of the metal industry and nurture it with the soft feminine qualities of the fashion industry. Combining these materials together make me question different roles that we play in society.

 

Industry plays an important role in my work but animals are an everyday occurrence for me. Bunnies symbolize creativity, Intelligence and wit. This animal reminds me to have fun and be creative. Another animal that I am attracted to is the deer. I often see them in the wild. The deer symbolizes unconditional love and compassion. They remind me about the strength and compassion that exists in the world.  They have a natural connection to humans that are unique from person to person. Using a variety of animals has helped me uncover the different meanings that animals have and the roles that they play in our world. I use Animal Spirit Guides and Astrology as a guide to help uncover their many different meanings.

 

There are many different artists today that I admire. Many of them use humor, color, and animals. Some of the artists that I admire for this are, Mike Kelley, Sylvie Fleury, Matthew Barney and Jeff Koons. Each of them use similar techniques to help enlighten their work.