Organism I, 2024, ceramic, 19" x 14" x 9"
Organism II, 2024, ceramic, 20" x 14" x 9"
Organism III, 2024, ceramic, 20" x 14" x 9"
Pia Mater means tender mother in Latin and is the delicate innermost membrane enveloping the brain and spinal cord. This piece works with the concept of interdependency; clustering forms that speak to each other in relationship--nestling and supportive and aligned in a responsive way to each other. I like to push the limits of what my materials can convey and let them speak in a gestural relationship, like life itself.
Pia Mater, 2009, fired clay, 60" length
Pia Mater (detail), 2009, fired clay, 60" length
This piece references a recurring theme in my work - carnal architecture - bones and organs becoming architectural forms and architecture or furniture becoming landscape or body. The design of the spine allows the ability to stand erect and protects the spinal chord which enervates the being.
Spinal Column II, 2020, porcelain, 28" height
Spinal Column II (detail), 2020, porcelain, 28" height
Spinal Column, 2009, fired clay, wood, and metal spikes, 84" height
Spinal Column (detail), 2009, fired clay, wood, and metal spikes, 84" height
Trophy, 2000, mixed media, 52" x 24" x 12"
Trophy II merges the concept of fertility and conquest. The contrasts found in the concepts of trophies are curious. There are the trophies that are composed of disembodied prey decoratively mounted on a hunter’s wall and there are women who are deemed to be “trophy wives.” This work also draws from the mythological, referencing Artemis of Ephesus, combining fertility with conquest. Looking at sculptures of Artemis of Ephesus, there is a common assumption that the spherical objects are female breasts. This is incorrect, they most likely represent the testicles of a bull, a symbol of fertility that persists to this day.
Trophy II, 2020, ceramic, 24" x 26" x 2"
Cernunnos, (“Horned One”) is the Celtic god of animals and wilderness. The references here are the ram, which symbolizes fertility in many cultures and a woman’s uterus and fallopian tubes. Porcelain, the material used in fine china, adds a contradictory refinement to the earthy and fecund imagery.
Cernunnos, 2022, porcelain, 34" x 9" x 3"
Life Cycle Series, 2021, fired clay, 8' width
Madonna, 2020, fired clay, 24" x 9" x 3"
Our Lady of the Prairie, 2020, fired clay, 32" x 9" x 3"
Young Queen, 2020, fired clay, 24" x 9" x 3"
This piece is another hybrid piece - a contemporary version of an ancient Egyptian footed bowl - creating a humorous but poignant image of sanctuary or ritual.
Footed Pillow, 2009, ceramic and cement, life-size
Footed Pillow II, 2016, cast glass and light, life-size
This piece was inspired by the rhythms left by small streams of water in sand. A wall of multiples of this form creates visual music.
Rivulets, 2022, ceramic, 18" x 18" x 2"
Rivulets (multiples), 2022, ceramic, dimensions variable
Torso with Bird Head, 2020, fired clay, 20" x 9" x 5"
Female Form with Bird Head, 2020, fired clay, 24" x 9" x 5"
Blackbird, 2021, ceramic, 26" x 14" x 12"
Untitled Wall Sculpture I, 2021, ceramic, 26" x 14" x 4"
Untitled Wall Sculpture I (detail), 2021, ceramic, 26" x 14" x 4"
Untitled Wall Sculpture II, 2021, ceramic, 26" x 14" x 4"
Untitled Wall Sculpture II (detail), 2021, ceramic, 26" x 14" x 4"
Glass Brain 2020, cast glass and light, 10" x 12" x 8"
Buds, 2020, fired clay, 30" x 12" x 3"
In this body of work, I am investigating one of my first loves - the malleability of clay - a connection to an ancient, primal way of making - desiring that moment of pulling something formed by hands from the fire, transformed into a solid form. The pure form of the vessels began to take on various human qualities, i.e., yearning or nurturing. Inside/outside space becomes important - the mystery of the inside space. The pieces became resonant sound amplifiers, and viewers were encouraged to actively listen to the sculptures as actual sound pieces or, more conceptually in Auditory Vessel, the piece becomes a receptacle for secrets told.
Vessels, 2009, fired clay, 35" height
Auditory Vessel (detail), 2009, fired clay, 35" height
Salvage, 2009, fired clay, 42" height
Auditory Vessel, 2009, fired clay, 35" height
Suppliant, 2009, fired clay, 35" height
Madonna II, 2020, ceramic and ink and charcoal on paper, 63" x 40" x 2"
Stroma (from Greek στρῶμα 'layer, bed, bed covering') is the part of a tissue or organ with a structural or connective role. It is made up of all the parts without specific functions.
Stroma, 2017, cast paper, encaustic, and cast wax, 36" x 12" x 3"
The word volute means an upward spiral movement. This piece is based on the shape that smoke takes when a particular note is played on the organ. To me it is a visual musical note.
Volute, 2008, hydrostone, 75" height
Inverted Riverbed, 2004, cement, and sod, 30' x 28" x 12"
Inverted Riverbed (detail), 2004, cement, and sod, 30' x 28" x 12"
Iron Spiral, 2004, cast iron and cement, 75" height
Heart Vessel, 2020, ceramic with oil paint, 20" height
These original black glass sculptures were hand blown and manipulated hot. The title Boutons refers to the part of a nerve fiber or cell which facilitates contact between nerves--designed to communicate information--embodying physical forms that listen and converse-striving to rise into consciousness.
Boutons, 2020, black glass, 8" height, grouped dimensions variable
