Statement of Current Work

The verticality of this series comes out of my exploration of conveying information, in non-narrative abstraction, rather than presenting a closed, concrete scene. By creating and expanding my vocabulary of abstract forms, with their correlations and contentions, I am trying to describe how it feels to be in this world, at this time.
After the recent presidential election, my works began with horizontal blue and red (or red and blue, if you like) pencil lines. Sometimes drawn with force, sometimes drawn almost hovering over the surface, sometimes with those two colors overlapping, sometimes isolated or alternating.
​Struck by the differences of now compared to days, months and years ago, living in the rushing flow of information and the questioning of sources, context, reach and response - it leaves me questioning my bearings and needing to express what remains and holds true.
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Exploring the compulsion to engage with the pull of a brushstroke or diffuse the evidence of my hand, while plainly aware of the contrasts that are all surrounding. The beauty of the Pacific Northwest. The multitude of inequities. The desire to help others, the desire to protect oneself. Where should boundaries be placed? Which ones can just float away? Exploring these ideas in narrow verticals, employing the mutability of oil paint and mixed media on gessoed Rives BFK paper, is currently where I am engaging as an artist.