Sediment Study no. 1 Painting

I am inspired by the natural world and humanity’s relationship with the shifting environment. Nature consists of repeating forms, from cellular growth to crystalline structures. These systematic patterns can lead to an expectation of stability in a static and unchanging world, which brings with it a distorted sense of security and the feeling that nature can be understood and conquered. The broken quality of the patterns in this body of work represents the reality of constant change and unpredictability. At times the shapes appear to be in the process of forming, at others, eroding or receding. My recent research focuses on the patterns and textures made in natural substrates by wind, water and human interventions. Translating these forms through traditional textile techniques allows me to create compositions that are at once abstract and familiar. The use of monochromatic black materials allows the viewer to focus on the form and pattern in each piece, while also creating a sense of heaviness and encouraging reflection. Additional surface treatments, such as felting, stiffening, and coating the surface with graphite allow me to create forms that appear frozen in time. I aim to blur the line between human and geological timescales, as James Hutton describes: “No vestige of a beginning, no prospect of an end.”