I paint as a form of my self expression. Painting gives me a voice that I cannot find in any other form of self-expression. I find the very act of painting essential to my life. What draws me to painting is the feeling that I can see some part of the artists struggle in the paint and imagery. I am attracted to expressive paintings. Large works that have a lot of energetic texture and sense of experience when you look at the piece.

I paint using only my hands and fingers. I have used this process for most of my career. Early on I felt I wasn’t connecting with my emotional side, or making that visceral leap from painting to viewer. So, twenty-two years ago I put down the brush to capture that expression and haven’t looked back.

My current work is an exploration of my emotive connection to the animal kingdom. All the animal paintings represent some part of my emotional self, usually one that I am not fully aware of at the time. These animals show me a path of self-exploration.

The animals are totems, each representing an emotion or a deep hidden truth that needs to be voiced. For example, the polar bear represents my inner peace, and my source of strength and quite resolve. The horse is my restlessness and desire to be free of what is expected of me as an adult female and allows me to experience the unknown .

I cannot paint an animal unless I feel an emotional attachment to it. If the attachment is lacking or forced, then the emotional content of the piece is lost for the viewer and me. I connect with the animal on an unconscious level, so when I am painting the animal’s facial expression I am simultaneously revealing some aspect of my inner self

How my subconscious feelings find their way into these paintings is extremely intriguing to me. Each animal speaks to me visually, which I translate into a painting. The painting becomes a doorway, which in turn shows me the intended path of my connection to the animal emotion. My emotions are so entwined with the animal imagery, it’s sometimes hard for me to put it into words, and thus the painting speaks for me. These animals are the chariots of my inner thoughts, carrying my private passions out into the world.

I don’t choose the animal; it chooses me. These animals come to me in dreams or random thoughts. I begin with sketching. As I work with an image I become caught up in a hailstorm of feelings. I then paint the animal/emotion until I have fulfilled an inner expression which is revealed to me slowly. It may take many paintings for me to begin to understand my attraction or need to paint a particular beast.

My process of painting is a journey of inward reflection and outward expression. I cannot say why or when the animal images will come to me, but when they come, it’s because I have a deep need to express some hidden emotion. I might not be aware of the specific emotion at first, but I feel compelled to paint and express the feelings that are driving these paintings. I never know how long this tenuous relationship will last. Since each animal speaks directly to my subconscious, they will grow and change along side of me, as my dialog with self continues, so to does my visual vocabulary. This self-exploration is not bound by time or limited by the number of paintings, but by my commitment to my true unhindered emotions. Until that void is filled, I will continue to paint the path of my subconscious. Where ever that may lead.