Artist's Statement

In my pursuit of art I have tried almost every medium, from painting, ceramics, printmaking, drawing and fiber arts.  None of it fully satisfied my desire to do something different until I discovered that I could use hog casings (gut) as a medium for art.  Although few contemporary artists are exploring this medium, indigenous peoples frequently use it to make clothing and ritual objects.  It is also a forerunner of Gortex.

Gut is a marvelous material to work with, not easy but challenging.  It often has a mind of its own.  I have to wash it, let it dry, feed it onto a dowell, and cut it into workable lengths.  It gives me the ability to make uncommon three dimensional forms.  Gut is a perfect medium to create my shoes.

Shoes let me tell stories.  They are often shaped by political or whimsical themes that I come across in my daily life.  The title transforms the shoe’s shape and design into a statement.  I created “Bound” after I held in my hand an example of bound feet, a tiny Chinese shoe that told a story.  I channeled my anger into a work of art.  A hightop sneaker on a skateboard became “Boys and Their Toys” to represent my view of the tech industry in the San Francisco Bay Area.   

Throughout history shoes have told a story or hinted at the personality of the wearer.  My  shoes truly have the ability to speak.

Reflections on my 1-month Residency at the Mendocino Art Center

In January of 2020 I attended a month-long Artist Residency at the Mendocino Art Center.  My goals at the time were to develop two bodies of work that I had begun in my studio.  These new works explored political and environmental themes, on immigration and on climate change.

This was my first residency, and I didn’t really know what to expect.  It was different from going to workshops, which I enjoy.  In workshops I often get caught up in other people’s work, but at Mendocino the focus was just on my own.  

At first I was lonely, but in a short time I began to meet the artists and employees at the Center, plus a few residents in the town.  I had this large studio space all to myself, which was great.  People would wander in, curious about what I was doing and  attracted by the material I use.  When they found out I was working with gut, people wanted to learn more about it.  It was easy to start conversations, which led to my meeting two unusual artists, a weaver and a printmaker, who were doing a long term residency. 

Suzanne, a weaver, worked in knitting and crochet, so we had an affinity as fiber artists.  She taught me how to knit with gut, and we went to visit a show of Uzbekistan embroidery in Fort Bragg.  John, the printer, was also very talented.  He was a first time printer, but had worked in corporations using graphics to facilitate meetings.

The residency gave me the chance to get away and think about my work, without the usual distractions of being at home or at my studio.  I made progress on both bodies of work, and experimented with some other ideas.  Not everything turned out to my liking, but that really didn’t matter.  I reconnected with myself as an artist.

I became quite comfortable there, perhaps too comfortable.  I didn’t want to leave, but all good things have to come to an end!

Here are some images of the work I started in Mendocino.