Artist Statement

About her figurative work:

 

“Intrinsically curious and inquisitive, my most recent work explores the art of drag. Despite its turbulent past, drag culture has a very special gift to offer: the power of liberation. One can cross boundaries of gender, age, and class via aesthetic transformation. Ideally, though on a more radical level, drag would bridge the gap between ‘straight’ and ‘gay’ persons, as these labels of narrowly defined sexuality can only survive in a world where men are exclusively masculine and women exclusively feminine. My paintings, like those who perform, colorfully illustrate that the world in reality is not so.

                 The visuals in the majority of my work originate from photographs I took at various drag performances this year. My desire to render bits and pieces of drag culture stems from numerous sources; from my (some may argue ‘excessively’) liberal upbringing, my mother consistently instilled within me values of respect and appreciation for all humans, regardless of appearance. I admire those who are able to deliberately place themselves outside the norm and take an active role in defying strict social codes of behavior, knowing that they may well indeed receive criticism for doing so. Painting the colorful life is almost as seductive, challenging, and exciting as being a true drag diva!”

 

About her abstract work:

                 “My abstract pieces really blossomed when I was experiencing frustrations with particular drag queen paintings and other figurative work.  I use a completely different approach with these paintings; no visual research is done beforehand, and no premeditated ideals of beauty are kept in mind. I am more concerned with the direct, physical manipulation of materials. I use forms and shapes that are not absolute in their identity, and thus the viewer can make his or her own personal associations. The layers of paint, drips, and forms amalgamate into a rather fortuitous composition of both psychology and emotion.”