Color is pure energy

It has the power to affect our mood, transform our experiences and emotionally connect us

I use intense color and precise, linear marks to tell stories of our lived environments and their impact on our bodies and minds. My paintings are a mix of abstract expressionism and op-art. This merging of intuitive gestures and rigorous process evolved through my visual and emotional engagement with dense cities and yard-filled towns.

In earlier paintings, created while living in New York, I deconstructed the city through the lens of a suburban kid from Texas. I built extremely horizontal canvases with a minimal palette of rigid linework. Often presented as triptychs, they alluded to city as religion and the dominance of man-made structures over their creators.

My recent artworks on stained, organically shaped, wood panels, mimic the complexities of nature. These are influenced by the urban forests, seasonal creeks and flowering landscape of my hometown, Austin, TX. I weave reflective acrylic paints over and around woodgrain patterns, representing motion, shimmering light, root and fungal networks, and the passage of time. The fluid, grain patterns are a gift. They inform each painting and serve as a reminder of the need to connect with nature.

These ideas informed my recent project, and outdoor installation of seventy painted and shaped wood panels for the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The site-specific art was developed in reaction to the pandemic. Through the interaction of trees and seasonal light with my colorful forms, I address nature's role in supporting our mental health and what being outdoors can teach us about perception, context and memory.