Artist's Statement

A sense of place has always been vitally important to me. My backyard and the woods beyond, neighborhood parks, alpine trails, urban streets and alleys, old stone buildings and cobbled streets, deserts, canyons, and rugged shorelines inspire and ground me.

 Watercolor’s unique qualities invite me to express my experience of a place. Starting with photographs and sketches, I focus either on a small part or wider view of a scene. I consider the feeling of the place. Does it evoke peace and solitude, a strong sense of history, or a wild kind of energy? I want to show that feeling in my painting. Arranging shapes, choosing colors, and placing the lights and darks are part of my planning process. Then comes the moment when the water and paint work together on the paper and almost always lead to unexpected blending of colors and blurring of lines – surprises that can often express the spirit of a place even better than what I’d planned. That is what I love about watercolor.

 Painting deepens my memory and experience of a place and time, and in that sense, I paint for myself. I also paint with a desire to share those places and the feelings they evoke with others. I am delighted when a painting conveys energy or emotion to someone in a way that connects them to their own sense of place.