I have been creating artwork in one form or another since I was about 4 years old. There have been pockets of time in my life where I did not create art at all, these have undoubtedly been my darker moments and I have since vowed to make sure that art and creativity be a constant and integral aspect of my life. My art is my life, a reflection of it, an expression of it, and like life, it is a journey that is constantly changing, growing and transforming.

I received my B.A. in Fine Art with a painting emphasis at San Diego State University, and also studied Illustration at the Academy of Art University, San Francisco through their online program. I hold an A.S. in Multimedia from San Diego Mesa College and have been doing freelance graphic design for several years. I also dabble in photography, love to travel whenever I can, sew and make eco-friendly bags and accesories here ukastyle.com. Besides visual art, my life has always been profoundly touched by health, fitness and the art/science of movement. A former dancer and currently a long distance runner, cyclist and practitioner of Pilates, I also work as a Pilates Instructor. I am a (BASI) certified Pilates instructor and am currently teaching at Pilates on Cue, and Total Woman Gym in Encinitas.

About Concept:

My style traverses the realms of the expressive and the surreal. I am interested in evoking a psychological response from the audience through the use of symbols that tap into the human collective consciousness. Simultaneously I am urging the viewer to draw from their own experiences to interpret the imagery. I am nothing more than a visual messenger, attacking the visual process intuitively much in the way a poet would with words. Once complete the work no longer belongs to me; responsibility now lies with the viewer to decode and insert context. Interpretation will inevitably vary from viewer to viewer; each coming from disparate experiences, beliefs, and frames of reference. In this way my work is a malleable entity, often influenced deeply by life experiences, love of nature, design, color, pattern, as well as issues revolving around feminist consciousness. My hope is to infuse these experiences into my work as symbolic clues that invite the viewer to investigate and develop their own narrative about the work by filling in the blanks.

About Process:

Addicted to texture and layers, both physical and psychological, my paintings are a marriage of both; fusing texture, color, and design with conceptual imagery. Much of my work deals with process, where the construction, or “art making” is in itself the art. I want the viewer to be able to experience the physical layers that hint at a deeper subtext. Media includes traditional paint and drawing materials often layered above collaged surfaces. You will sometimes find printed or handwritten text elements in my work, often illegible, partially hidden or submerged beneath other layers. I like how words impose meaning, and force interpretation, further I aim to dissolve this meaning and leave the viewer with more questions than answers. The text is yet another element used to evoke narrative; riddled with the many variables surrounding “meaning”, via semantics, personal references, and ideology.