Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, I have a strong affinity with the landscape and natural beauty that surrounds us. I am particularly drawn to the reflective nature of water and the horizon line that separates it from the ever changing colors and textures of the sky. Water distorts and clarifies, fractures and mirrors it’s subject; offering altered perspectives of the tangible landscape it reflects upon its surface. The sky contorts, swells, billows and clears with a seemingly infinite range of colors and textures as the light and weather conditions change. Both sky and water possess different reflective qualities that interact in striking ways, with the horizon line creating a sense of balance between the two. This is not only beautiful to behold, but reflective of one’s emotional experience.

        In my work I use color as a way of exploring this relationship, and a landscape’s ability to foster deeper states of contemplation within the viewer. Color possesses an immediate sensorial quality that brings unseen thoughts and feelings to the surface, acting as a kind of visual language for the inner landscape of emotion. With this idea, I am able to delve into the evocative relationship between land, water and sky.

        I work primarily on wood panels, incorporating abstracted landscapes into the texture of the woodgrain. I use colored pencil and oil paint to enhance the naturally occurring shapes in the wood. Building up rich layers of color and texture with these mediums helps create a sense of depth within the woodgrain, bringing it to life. Working with wood also provides me with a deeper sense of meaning because of its history as a living being, which has been recorded in the unique patterns of its surface. Accentuating these patterns enables me to immortalize the life of each tree I work with, celebrate it’s beauty, and feel more connected to the landscapes that inspire my work.

        I use this interplay between surface texture, depth and exaggerated color to play upon the emotive qualities of the landscape which serves as a reflection of my own inner world - making the intangible, tangible.