This work makes use of the Asian line, materials, and monochromatic convention of writing. Abstracting from calligraphy, which was itself derived from ideographs, in a sense reverses the process – returning by allusion to the original meaning in both form and concept. Approaching Western abstraction through the use of Eastern line and materials gives me a unique way of working that draws on the strengths of both genres while transcending their respective limits. I find this combination synergistic, freeing my work from conventional artistic constraints.

Artist's Statement

Art is utterly revealing. Whatever the medium, everything we do is recognizably a self-portrait. This work is no exception. I see it as analogous to the scoring left behind in the ice by a skater. These marks are the record of the encounter of my neuromuscular system with the paper, as mediated by an inked brush, reflecting the rhythm, intensity, and character of my touch.

You can see everything about a person from her calligraphy. Hesitation, bracing, catching, and guarding are all clearly evident. So are expansiveness, release, openness, and freedom. When the line is true, the viewer can recognize himself, resonating with some aspect that he shares with the artist...or has potential to share. It is in this latter respect that the capacity of art to inspire resides.

There is one common approach to my work in both the visual and performing arts: letting the work do itself. The subtext of each piece is always the same, with the emphasis being on the process underlying the form. By getting out of the way, I can explore what I really intend by seeing what happens when I don't make it happen. Whatever the medium, my true subject is the creative process itself.

Transcending considerations of product in this way permits expression of the unconscious impulse. To cultivate this practice in the context of art is to facilitate carrying it over into life in general. Such spontaneity is the true product of my work, a process intended to free the self.