Mud – rags – sticks – stuffs

I celebrate these raw and humble materials in creating mixed media figures. In my process, materials are the guide and source of inspiration. Mixing the media is about letting the materials speak and express their unique aspects. The challenge is bringing them together to form a whole, yet allowing each material its own integrity.

Mud – clay – earth – ground

It is with this sensual, pliable and forgiving material that I begin my process – the mythical stuff of our making. Head, hands, feet are formed – and then transformed through fire.

Rags – fabric – cloth – material

After clay parts are complete, I imagine the body. In the tradition of “doll” that I claim as a powerful icon of my girlhood, I use fabric. Cloth carries familiarity and comfort. Constantly touching us in our daily lives, our clothing is a second skin. My figures with frayed edges, loose threads, tracks of stitches, show the trace of making by hand; to honor the beautiful imperfection of humanness.

Sticks – tree – branch – twig

Since I began making figures more than 20 years ago, I have always included some aspect of tree. Attached to the figure, they are symbols of strength and growth. Sometimes, entire figures are sticks – with fabric, wrapped and knotted, holding them together. It is my praise song to nature. I add other materials as found, as needed. I appreciate the rich meaning and beauty in a smooth rock, a plum pit, a seed pod, or driftwood bleached by sun and water.

Stuffs

That is everything else, lost and found. It is rusty metal that is found on the street, or buttons and zippers found in drawers. It is puzzle pieces or keys that not longer fit; bottle caps that have served their purpose. It is old nails and jingle bells. It is the stuff of our lives – that find new life in these humble beings.

My intention is to communicate and inspire. Using materials as metaphor; I share my celebration of the beauty of nature, faith in possibility and the sacred quality of daily life…