The history of glass as a preserving medium, combined with my love of the garden provides a foundation for my work which celebrates themes of nurture, memory, tradition and fecundity – all with an inevitable touch of whimsy. Working primarily with glass, I use a variety of processes and techniques, each carefully chosen to enhance the communication of the piece: blown glass with screen printed hand-writing and photographs enameled and fired onto the surface of the glass; kiln-formed glass with sand-blasted imagery; and blown glass sculpture lit from within by low voltage lights.
I enjoy writing as well as glass-making and enjoy it best when I can combine story-telling with my art. I like to use hand-writing because it is so personally expressive, and on certain projects have invited people to write down their thoughts and stories so I can preserve them in glass. Through this type of work, I have been delighted to find where the personal meets the universal and how a conversation can be sparked by the recognition of another’s experience.
Coming from a cold climate (Ontario, Canada), I appreciate the preciousness of the natural world, and feel an inclination to preserve those things that are fragile and delicate and full of wonder. Glass is a perfect medium for me, because the material itself speaks to those qualities. Beauty, laughter, stories shared, a moment in the garden: these are some of life’s treasures worthy of being preserved and pondered.
In 2012, in answer to the theme “Patterns of Growth” I collaborated with metal artists Ernest and Lois Rich to install a piece at the John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek, CA – a selection of brightly colored “Floral Fancies” to greet young families as they visit the neo-natal unit. My husband took a video of the work in process.
In 2008 I created a 3.5’ x 8’ fused glass triptych for the Meditation Room at the Kaiser Hospital in Antioch. The sand-blasted branch which runs behind the sunset colors goes through the seasons from spring buds, summer fruits and fall leaves to bare winter twigs, and back to spring again to reflect the cyclical nature of life.
I enjoy making commissioned work tailored to suit the needs of my clients. I have participated in several complex private installations, including a stand of bamboo lit from within by LEDs for a home in San Francisco, and recently a series of blown glass elements to “float” underneath a sea of stained glass to be hung above a forged steel kelp staircase for a private home in Oakland.
I love language and I love metaphor. I enjoy the capacity of objects to connect me with memories of people, times and places. I have come to glass with a heart full of experience and an excitement at the possibility of expression, revelation and communion.
I feel at home in the garden. And so, my work in glass seems to combine these things.
I enjoy writing as well as glass-making and enjoy it best when I can combine story-telling with my art. I like to use hand-writing because it is so personally expressive, and on certain projects have invited people to write down their thoughts and stories so I can preserve them in glass. Through this type of work, I have been delighted to find where the personal meets the universal and how a conversation can be sparked by the recognition of another’s experience.
Coming from a cold climate (Ontario, Canada), I appreciate the preciousness of the natural world, and feel an inclination to preserve those things that are fragile and delicate and full of wonder. Glass is a perfect medium for me, because the material itself speaks to those qualities. Beauty, laughter, stories shared, a moment in the garden: these are some of life’s treasures worthy of being preserved and pondered.
In 2012, in answer to the theme “Patterns of Growth” I collaborated with metal artists Ernest and Lois Rich to install a piece at the John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek, CA – a selection of brightly colored “Floral Fancies” to greet young families as they visit the neo-natal unit. My husband took a video of the work in process.
In 2008 I created a 3.5’ x 8’ fused glass triptych for the Meditation Room at the Kaiser Hospital in Antioch. The sand-blasted branch which runs behind the sunset colors goes through the seasons from spring buds, summer fruits and fall leaves to bare winter twigs, and back to spring again to reflect the cyclical nature of life.
I enjoy making commissioned work tailored to suit the needs of my clients. I have participated in several complex private installations, including a stand of bamboo lit from within by LEDs for a home in San Francisco, and recently a series of blown glass elements to “float” underneath a sea of stained glass to be hung above a forged steel kelp staircase for a private home in Oakland.
I love language and I love metaphor. I enjoy the capacity of objects to connect me with memories of people, times and places. I have come to glass with a heart full of experience and an excitement at the possibility of expression, revelation and communion.
I feel at home in the garden. And so, my work in glass seems to combine these things.