My Journey

Initially, I painted to allow myself a creative outlet and as a means to remain connected to nature, after the onset of a chronic illness forced me to stop guiding wilderness trips. As my work progressed, my practice evolved into an exploration of medium. I tended to employ a slightly wild and erratic brushstroke, as my chronic condition had made consistency and precision unattainable. Embracing spasticity provided an opportunity to develop a more fluid, natural style.  I’ve come to embrace these accidental moments, as they inform my work with another, more direct form of  struggle and distortion.

Many of these pieces have a sense of struggle, confusion, anger and hope, a reflection of my having endured over twenty years of chronic pain. Having entered a period of recovery, there is a greater sense of hope in some of the works, accompanied by a willingness to explore a fuller range of emotion.