ARTIST'S STATEMENT

Country Landscape and Catching the Light

I came to the Hudson Valley in 1998 and settled in a rural community near the Ashokan Reservoir, in the heart of the Catskill Mountains. The reservoir was what drew me in. I remember being driven over the water on our way to see our house for the first time. All of a sudden, from the dense tree-lined roads, a completely open vista of water and mountains  appeared. My work has evolved into a painterly language describing the trifecta of light, air, and land. Iv'e discovered that for me the mountains are weightless as they hover between sky and water. I have painted the reservoir and mountains in its many moods. This past year I found myself having the courage to follow my instincts and take the work in new directions.  I discovered that I felt my loved ones were present, their spirit and energy within the landscape. The current phase of work led to a more internal interpretation of nature. Coming to grips with the power of the mountains involved moving past the ' scenery ' and into the ' spirit ' of the place. 

The Twinning Series

In the last year a shift in my perception transformed my practice, leading me to explore concepts of duality and doubling. I lost my twin sister Ellen when we were nineteen. Now I see  her reflected in the rhythms of the natural world. While out for my walk on a calm day,  inspiration came when I saw an exact likeness of the mountains reflected in the water. I was thinking of my identical twin and how comforting it was to see twinning in nature. This Doppelgänger effect became more obvious, there were doubles in clouds, trees, water,  mountains.... all the forms and shapes in front of me. It has taken me twenty years to see and feel these connections and this body of work explores these ideas, the presence of loved ones in the nature.