Earlier this year I had the privilege of teaching workshops and traveling throughout New Zealand. The country is comprised of two islands and some of the most luscious landscapes and ocean views in the world. It isn’t any wonder that when I returned to the States I was inspired to take a look at the work that I had been doing and think of what I could create in a whole new way.

When traveling on the north island in New Zealand, I spent a few days in the Kauri Forest. The Kauri Trees grow naturally on the north end of the island. They are majestic and impressive in their size and are some of the largest trees in the world. As mosses, ferns and plants grow and cling to their bodies, they exhibit a multitude of texture and variations on their surface. The texture and surface from Kauri to Kauri can vary significantly, and each one displays a mosaic surface that is rich and compelling.

Trees in general have long influenced my work. After experiencing the awesome beauty of New Zealand and the Kauris, I felt the need to create a new body of work, fabricating a more substantial, rich surface.

Looking for ways to freshly explore dyes on canvas and make the series even more textural than my previous work, these new pieces consist of hand-dyed canvas that I piece and then recut into a composition using a combination of raw and finished edges. This assemblage is then attached to canvas for hanging using various threads and long, rough, hand stitching. This new technique causes the viewer to be absorbed by the textures, experiencing the surfaces of the forest.

The ancient structures in nature are battered by the elements. They face adversity; surviving the harshest of conditions, yet continuing to show their true beauty. My artwork personifies these weathered shapes and landscapes. This representation of their being is what I continually strive to portray through my work.

The process of creating has its own sensibility; each step is an entirely new, uncharted journey. Cutting and sewing explodes from within, and the threadwork adds eminence and innovation. Incorporated in every piece is a taste of the immediate moment that has inspired each part of the work. I never know what that will be until I get there. My work becomes a combination of two lives: its individuality and mine.