Origin Valley, Tree of Life Painting

I paint characters embedded into highly textured surfaces, that have an ancient or earthy aesthetic. My figurative work currently starts with collaged raised relief maps, which I collect. I collect them because maps have always fascinated me due to their texture and their intricate details that evoke memory, invite us on a journey, give us a 'big picture' perspective, or tell a secondary story to what is paired with them. I cut, collage, or enhance the maps with sculptural detail to preserve or amplify the topography, geological features, or cultural connections of the place. As I do that, I am exploring parallels between those natural features and the features of the psyche of the archetypal figure I’m depicting. Then, I create a mixed media painting over it, which is either in just oils or oil over acrylics, art markers, collage, and spray paint. My style is painterly and textured. I experiment constantly with new materials. My previous training and experience as an Art Therapist informs my exploration of themes in the work. My figures tend to be innocents, explorers, and sages, who are seeking and finding restoration and peace. My series featuring singular trees I consider and present in a similar way…as characters overlaid on a map that underpins their story. The work also poses questions about the relationship between the person and the type of terrain or specific place, and sometimes about human or earth history. Sometimes it is about the land's history and its stewards, or their origin story on it. Throughout life, I have always made my homes and studios near the mountain forest, as it is where I find inspiration and comfort. My mother was a sculptor and my father an engineer making high resolution imagery for mapping. I traveled back and forth to visit them while growing up, flying across and looking down on the Rocky Mountains from airplanes. I take commissions and do custom work. One of the types of commissions I do is custom portraits on top of map(s) that are meaningful to the person.