Art Open House at NMCC, March 2, 2018
Artist Statement
A native New Mexican, I paint landscapes which romanticize the places explored when growing up. My style is representational and impressionistic often with a wildly abstracted use of color. My landscapes offer a somewhat realistic rendering with an intuitive use of color arising from emotional memory that stems from a way of thinking about and appreciating grand vistas.
I came to study painting as on outlet for expression. Fortunately, I found an excellent teacher who happened to paint using pastels. Painting with pastels provides almost immediate results, although not always what I expect. It is a forgiving medium sometimes, challenging always, and convenient in the confines of my small studio.
I’ve been painting for almost twenty years but, I have been involved in artistic endeavors since childhood. I had the good fortune to study modern dance under Elizabeth Waters, the founding dance instructor at UNM. Her pedagogy and insistence on frequent constructive criticism of her student’s choreography, along with the admonition, “if you make a mistake, make a big one…that way you will learn from it,” certainly plays a role in my current artwork. I am a serious critic of my own artwork, which both frustrates and motivates.
Although still a student of pastel painting, I have sold a small body of artwork. I envision myself as an artist who is a risk-taker, learns from solving problems, and focuses on new ideas that emerge on the canvas. I struggle with painting regularly, letting go of ideas I have found comfortable but which don’t make for interesting or enjoyable art and strive to play with color in new and satisfying ways.
Since 2014 I have found less time to paint when, with a group of other artists, my involvement in managing galleries increased. In late 2016 our group was asked to manage Matrix Fine Art. Our previous mission as a co-operative had been simple; to find a studio home where we could paint and critique together as well as a place to show our work. Taking over management of the Matrix gave us an extended mission; to offer artists who have no gallery affiliation the opportunity to share their art and their vision with the wider community Matrix managers view this mission as important community activism and I am honored to work with local artists to help them showcase their artwork.
