My love of antique books and their illustrators inspires my work as a collage artist and visionary builder. I often begin with a narrative idea, then develop the world in which it will take place.
I create collages using prints from other centuries and cultures: European caricature artists, the woodblock printers of the Ukiyoe, children’s book illustrators, Persian and Indian miniaturists and more. I deconstruct and reshape these into alternative worlds of fantasy, humor, mischief and color.
The collages are paper on cardboard, layered to give texture, interest and variety. The 3-dimensional works are an amalgam of paper, cardboard, found objects, glitter, bells, Styrofoam and potpourri.
I believe in magic and mystery, so all my three-dimensional collages have windows and doors that hold secrets to excite several senses and offer new perspectives on art and beauty.
Sometimes I start with a place – a British village, a harem, a theater. Sometimes I start with an idea – a Universe of Superheros, a meeting of garish creatures or a group of children playing among flowers.
Each work captures a moment in a universe of my own imagining, where all the elements combine to serve its narrative and create a refuge of beauty and whimsy.
