For the last 19 years, my practice has been to draw small sketches, pin it them to my loom, and create shaped, on/off the grid tapestries using natural fibers and various re-purposed mixed-media. I create almost all my work on large 4-harness floor looms. The visual translation of thought and memory, on and off the woven grid, helps usher in a renegotiation of my past and has become the rawest and most intuitive voice I've ever had.
I was self-taught before YouTube and knew very few rules when I began. I’ve learned through trial and error, and that allowed me the freedom to absorb techniques by movement, develop muscle memory, and learn to just eye-it using only a small sketch. I try to create work the way I envision it and often pull my warp to shape the edges. I use slit-work technique that disjoints the surface throughout the landscapes of my work. I use hand-dyed natural materials like wool, silk, cotton, and linen because of their luster and versatility. I also source and incorporate unconventional, manufactured, and re-used/re-purposed/recycled materials
My focus as an artist has been to grow techniques at the loom with muscle memory, expand my research of this craft and the issues I've felt compelled to cover. With the slit-work throughout and the saturated colors I dye are I attempt to evoke vibrance, movement, and familiarity, particularly as it depicts urban life in overpopulated urban environments. More specifically, I’ve been working on an ongoing series about addiction, homelessness, and mental health, especially as it relates to current conditions in the San Francisco Bay Area. Although my work has addressed relevant global topics, I have always, in different ways, referenced my East Bay and San Francisco origins. My translations in tapestry have all been informed by those complex, beautiful, and fast-changing environments.