Form, material, process, and meaning are central to my studio practice. By using representations of objects found within living and working environments, I aim to trigger memories of personal attachment and gender vulnerabilities. My artistic curiosity leads me to disassemble and reassemble objects, thereby abstracting the aesthetic associations connected to their inherent “object hood” and function. My process starts with an intervention on a chosen object, and I then afflict it with a repetitive process that reflects issues of identity, anxiety, stability, and attachment. I consider the history and relationship to the material and process, as well as its role in contemporary art, culture and craft.
My fascination with the diverse characteristics of various materials has led me to emphasize everything from the invincibility of industrial materials to the humility of fibrous ones. On a road of growth and development, I have consistently leaned towards using materials in their rawest forms as well as more traditional techniques that are grounded in our culture. In ‘Victoria, Excepted & Rejected’, for example, it was important that I became connected to the farming community, taking part in the process of creating rope from its raw state, learning and exploring traditional methods. In constructing artwork, I often feel a natural inclination towards covering, wrapping, or assembling structures on top of other forms, such as chairs, ladders, lawnmowers, gas cans, buildings, sheep, and abstracted forms that I make from chicken wire and paper maché. This tendency to cover and conceal objects arises out of my childhood memories of my mother adorning the things she loved the most (e.g., fitting covers on the furniture, dressing her children, and even dressing the dog). This practice of covering and assembling objects gives rise to feelings of protection and, through implication, its opposite—a sense of vulnerability.