Art has been a part of me since my earliest memories. I began to work in surface design in 1980 when I first learned how to batik, a Polynesian art form that combines the dyeing and waxing of fabric.
After several years of working in that medium, I began to incorporate hand painting, screen printing and other forms of surface manipulation onto my fabrics. In 1994, I learned machine sewing and my art took a dramatic turn. I began to quilt the fabric that I was making for others. Long before a given piece is born, I immerse myself in the process of creating a visual surface on the fabric, an integral part of my work. This can take the form of dyeing, screen printing, hand painting or block printing.
When I begin a piece, I seldom have a preconceived notion of what it is going to look like when it is finished. One segment often builds upon another. I start a piece by selecting color, which in itself brings me joy. The surface designed cloth is the springboard I use to create my quilts. They relate in ways that I don’t try to interpret. I leave interpretation to the viewer. The vocabulary for my art comes from a non-verbal place. It can be experienced within the piece itself.
