ART FROM THE EARTH

My inspiration comes from my love of nature and from the cultures and regions I have visited on my travels to the seven continents and to many remote islands around the world. I create art from vines, roots, branches, and other natural objects that I collect from the woods and beach near my home in New Hampshire. I also decorate my pieces with found or repurposed objects, or sometimes with items I’ve brought back from my travels. Most of the bones I use are found in the woods, given to me by friends who know I use them in my art. Occasionally I salvage roadkill and bury it in my garden for a year to let Mother Earth clean it. My dreamcatchers, earth art, and medicine ladders are all handmade with great care. Each one is unique.

My art embraces the Japanese concept of Wabi-sabi: finding beauty in imperfection. When I walk outdoors, I see art in a broken branch covered in moss, in a weathered bone, in a twisted vine or a gnarled root, in a piece of driftwood, in a fallen leaf or sea-worn shell. The natural shapes of the materials I use influence my process of construction and design. I let the treasures of the Earth speak to me. The idea for my spiral designs came to me in a dream. As soon as I woke up I made my first one and the design evolved from there. I particularly like using the spiral because it is an ancient symbol, found in prehistoric cave dwellings, on rocks, and in tombs around the world. It is also found in the natural world: in plants, minerals, animal physiology, and weather patterns. It is thought that the ancients used the spiral to represent evolution and growth, and possibly to represent creation and the expanding universe. The fact that a spiral-shaped dreamcatcher came to me in a dream is significant, and it has become my favorite design to use.