Artist Statement
My recent gouache and oil paintings are populated by figures painted from life, invention, and pastiche, juxtaposing diverse visual references such as self-portraiture, nostalgic imagery, and figures appropriated from Rococo painting. The pieces are a place for me to stage narratives or invent characters that, while ambiguous to the viewer, refer to relationships and experiences of mine and reference certain thematic concerns. Recently I am thinking about the transition from childhood to adulthood, sexuality, and symbols of femininity and masculinity.
These works also reflect my ongoing fascination with the beauty of small things and the strange and playful potential of toys and miniatures. I hope my work also reflects a unifying interest in the feminine and fantastical. The paintings can be lovely and dear, but there is also darkness: a strange scale shift, a mysterious shadow, a dark expanse of gray, or a partially-destroyed figure that imply ambiguity, violence, or sadness.
Artist Bio
I was born in Washington, DC and grew up in Arlington, Virginia. I studied art and Spanish in college, and I received a Fulbright grant to teach English and art in Madrid, Spain. After a wonderful year in Spain, I received my MFA in painting from the University of New Hampshire. I have also completed artist residencies at the Chautauqua School of Art and the Vermont Studio School, and have shown my work in DC, Madrid, Boston, and at the Bowery Gallery in New York.
I have taught painting and drawing at the George Washington University, Anne Arundel Community College, and for Arlington County community programs. I have a studio in the historic 52 O Street Studios building, and I am proud to participate in community/charitable arts events such as the Whitman Walker Clinic and Metro Teen Aids art auctions.
My recent gouache and oil paintings are populated by figures painted from life, invention, and pastiche, juxtaposing diverse visual references such as self-portraiture, nostalgic imagery, and figures appropriated from Rococo painting. The pieces are a place for me to stage narratives or invent characters that, while ambiguous to the viewer, refer to relationships and experiences of mine and reference certain thematic concerns. Recently I am thinking about the transition from childhood to adulthood, sexuality, and symbols of femininity and masculinity.
These works also reflect my ongoing fascination with the beauty of small things and the strange and playful potential of toys and miniatures. I hope my work also reflects a unifying interest in the feminine and fantastical. The paintings can be lovely and dear, but there is also darkness: a strange scale shift, a mysterious shadow, a dark expanse of gray, or a partially-destroyed figure that imply ambiguity, violence, or sadness.
Artist Bio
I was born in Washington, DC and grew up in Arlington, Virginia. I studied art and Spanish in college, and I received a Fulbright grant to teach English and art in Madrid, Spain. After a wonderful year in Spain, I received my MFA in painting from the University of New Hampshire. I have also completed artist residencies at the Chautauqua School of Art and the Vermont Studio School, and have shown my work in DC, Madrid, Boston, and at the Bowery Gallery in New York.
I have taught painting and drawing at the George Washington University, Anne Arundel Community College, and for Arlington County community programs. I have a studio in the historic 52 O Street Studios building, and I am proud to participate in community/charitable arts events such as the Whitman Walker Clinic and Metro Teen Aids art auctions.
