I’m a printmaker and book artist with a love of all things paper.  I’ve become an artist as a second career, after raising my two kids and practicing real estate and construction law in the Seattle area.  I began taking printmaking classes at Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle a number of years ago and became completely entranced (or obsessed) with the variety of printmaking process and the element of surprise and serendipity in the work. All of the prints are original and hand pulled and many of the pieces include more than one type of printmaking. I’m a member of Columbia City Gallery, in Seattle, and my work has been shown elsewhere around the Pacific Northwest region as well as nationally and internationally. My work is included in public and private collections.

My work is deeply place based and much of my imagery is focused on exploring the soul of my hometown of Seattle.  With a background in architecture and construction, I look to the clues and messages found in physical form and structure in the built environment, particularly those fragments that remain after the passage of time. I often collect materials while walking and use them in creating the prints.

I have a long time love affair with maps, their graphic quality, as wayfinding tools both actual and metaphysical, as indicators of the patterns of human settlement and as metaphor for life’s journeys, for being lost and found. Actual, historic and imagined maps and street grids all make an appearance in the prints.

The Duwamish River is a rich source of inspiration for a body of work I’ve created over the past few years, both prints and artist books.  As Seattle’s only river, it was the heart of indigenous settlement and also industrial growth. I typically begin a piece by rusting the paper, using metal scraps I’ve collected walking the River’s edge, and then layer imagery using hand cut stencils, watercolor and pen and ink. To quote Gretel Ehrlich, “To trace the history of a river is to trace the history of a soul.”

             In addition to a love of making things with my hands I also love to read and write poetry, so making artist books has been a natural evolution.  The ability to portray a narrative in 3D is particularly appealing and I incorporate my prints, poetry and text in the books.  The source of the text can be letterpress, screen print, a digital printer or a 1948 Royal typewriter. 

            When I’m not in the studio I can often be found in the open air, birding and exploring the Puget Sound streets and area trails by foot, enjoying the spectacular beauty of the mountains and water. I also enjoy trips to eastern Washington to absorb the huge skies and fascinating forms of the Scablands, high desert and river canyons.  For me, the natural world is a critical refuge and source of inspiration and opportunity to recharge my artistic and spiritual self.