Statement

I am a mixed media artist who works with fabric. My mother taught me how to sew during my childhood, and I studied textiles in art school.

My artwork is a combination of printmaking, painting, and collage, on fabric. I am very interested in working with the different grid patterns of construction fences. Sometimes I use the grids from monoprinted construction fences just for the grid, and other times it’s a metaphor for protections or boundary setting.

My interest in using construction fences started in 2002 when I started seeing different patterns, shapes, and sizes, as they were being used at many construction sites as a barrier to keep people safe by blocking off the site.

On hot days the fences can get limp and sag, and on cold days they sometimes crack and break. At times my use of the printed fence follows the grid, and at other times I like to break it apart, the same as can happen in the life of an actual construction fence.

After I monoprint the textures of fences on fabric, I also incorporate additional painting and collage techniques. I also often stitch the fabric by following the grids of the fence pattern.

The size of my work varies from as small as 6 inches to all the way up to 35 feet. I really enjoy creating work that is small to extremely large, and the challenges that come working in different formats. 

For my wall pieces, I sometimes mount the fabric on boards, and other times the fabric is stiffened with matt medium so it looks like paper or plastic. If a piece incorporates an upcycled embroidered tablecloth, it hangs a normal piece of fabric.

My installations are created using one piece of monoprinted fabric that is stiffened with matt medium which also makes it weather-proof. Some of my installation pieces have been exhibited outside for more than 18 months and do quite well after having full sun exposure, and after being rained and snowed on.