March 2025

I have taken a four year hiatus from this blog, but I’m back and I wanted to share with you the thoughts around a new series. Each of these series is inspired by the times we are living through. The last series I wrote about, Shaman Ladders, I created  during the pandemic. During those difficult times, I often looked up to the stars, searching for a place for my mind to escape. From that came the idea for the Shaman Ladders which were featured in a solo show at the Newport Art Museum in June of 2023, curated by Francine Weiss.

Since 2025 I’ve been working on a new series called “Digging in”. The image I’m experimenting with now is a trowel with a tree beginning to grow out of it. For me, the image is a metaphor of how we can encourage beautiful and nourishing things to grow. I’m not thinking only of gardens but also of landscapes that have been damaged by war and pollution. 

My process for these series always begins with drawings, then I do paintings and sculptures. The sculptures begin in wood, and if I’m pleased I will take them to be cast. The latest trowel sculpture is a wall-hung piece. I took the wooden version to the foundry, and it has come back in aluminum, and in pieces. I must now work on welding it together, grinding, then apply the color patinas. As I finish this new piece, I’ll share more of the process. 

In the meantime, I hope you’ll focus on your powers of creation and positive transformation- we need them.