Artist Statement

Growing up surrounded by a pack of strong dynamic females shaped who I am today.  From an early age I observed these women and tried to make sense of who they were.   Today I know that a person’s character is never solidified because we are forever making the conscious or unconscious decision to adapt or react.  I have used my work to visually capture the moments that have, and continue to, shape the lives of women particularly in the South.  My work is a commentary of these women and the many reasons why their lives continue to be affected by gender roles, familial bonds, and mental illness.  I have incorporated these themes into my work by using visual narratives that describe moments of emotional jubilation and depression.  I try to make my work ambiguous enough so that other people can identify with it and place it in context with their own experiences.

My artwork is inspired by issues that affect women, specifically the long term effects of being raised to fulfill female gender roles.  I am attracted to the processes and meditative experiences involved in printmaking, fibers, and ceramics.  I enjoy the intimate connection that embroidery creates between the work itself, the viewer, and the artist.  My fiber pieces are based around the concept of taking a female object that has been neglected or has become outdated and breathing life back into that object by creating a story about the previous owner visually.