A Brief History
My parents and I immigrated in the fifties from France not long after World War II. I grew up in Idaho where, for a few years, we were the only European immigrants in town.
It was not until my mid twenties that I began delving into university art classes which led to two degrees. I explored textiles, painting and printmaking.
I come from a family that works with their hands; an ornamental iron maker, a chef, a hair stylist, a painter and craftsman.
Process is an important part of my working style. The gathering of found papers or objects, transforming them and discovering another meaning keeps me exploring.
My Work
The ties that bind, in this case, the paper that bonds me to my childhood, my heritage. My love of paper, particularly weathered paper found in the country of my childhood has proved to be a link that keeps me grounded.
In a way, the work is coming full circle, from using clear imagery on the front to selecting the back of papers that show through multiple complicated layers. I discover family is like a lot of layers glued together each showing their imperfections yet bonding to the whole.
