The borderline between nature and abstraction fascinates me. I explore this edge both in
photographs and paintings. When I take a walk in the woods, I pass by countless miniature compositions that are astoundingly beautiful. I simply accept these gifts through the eye of the camera.
My paintings pay tribute to nature not by reproducing scenes, but by borrowing gestures, textures, lines, colors, and spaces. Shapes made by branches, rocks, capillaries, clouds, and puddles all can be discerned within the dense mesh of the paintings. Sometimes I start with an overall composition, as in the the Grand Canyon series. Other times I begin with amorphous washes of color and then respond to what’s on the canvas by adding shapes and textures. Layer piles upon layer and must be simplified and resolved by overall patterns and color harmonies. It feels similar to the complexity of a long life. Louise Fishman, Milton Avery, and Bill Jensen are major influences on my work.
Poems are likewise abstractions. I begin with how I am feeling and let seemingly random images guide me into the miniature world of a poem.
In my previous life I taught Physiology for 33 years at Hampshire College. Now I get to play with all the other aspects of life. I spend a lot of time in the woods near my house. I’m also active in Mount Toby Friends Meeting (Quaker).