I think of my light-based works as Frankenstein-like constructions brought to life by flowing electricity. A major concern of my work is glowing and reflected light and its ability to transmit mood, tone, and emotion. Adaptivity of materials and transparency of connections are prioritized. Re-working sculptures and using scrap and found materials challenges me to reconsider my concept of damage. My interest in spirituality is evoked in the work’s tone. I am drawn to moments of paused cyclical movement-waves, tires, the sunset. These pauses inspire moments of presence and contemplation where the everyday becomes ethereal.
When I had the windows of my house replaced, I refused the glass in my kiln to create Mailbox, Slumbox and RAM. They are all imprinted with tire treads, a recurring pattern that conveys movement and that which is underfoot, but also is a sort of cohesive pattern, like the skin of a snake. The glass is intentionally vitrified for the milky silvery light-diffusing quality it creates. RAM references the truck, the animal and also ovaries. Mailbox is a repository for in-transit mail that also hints at a tombstone. Slumpbox references a wet cardboard box; a hint at online shopping. These works point to timeless cycles in life and also recent news stories. Making connections through mail, telephones, vehicles and shared experiences are recurring themes in my work.
The wall sculptures from my Receiver series are composed of glass fused and slumped with tire-tread impressions and bound with metal to ceramic casts of wood that have been manipulated in shape. They reference the body, the sensitivity of the spine as if a high voltage power line connecting nerves and facilitating movement referenced by tread marks fused in the slumped glass. The metal and soft faux-fur elements of the Receiver series were inspired by a splint I had after an injury. Each part of the works in this series are intended to have equal weight in terms of importance. The visible nuts and bolts connect the parts of each Receiver into a single toned system. Works in the series are named from parts of phone numbers I recall from my childhood, as if the sculptures are wall-mounted communication receptacles.