ARTIST STATEMENT
My current practice explores imaginary landscapes. I wish to explore the intersection of nature and human culture, where myth and nature dissolve into something more immediate, and time disappears. Monotype has opened new avenues for my practice, creating works which evoke a sense of antiquity and erosion. Working mostly in relief printing, I use chance operations to explore the subliminal state; somewhere in between dreamscape and real. I especially love the organic patterns and textures derived from thinning the ink. The manner in which the ink stretches and breaks feels like rock eroded by time.
As a way to work more directly, I’ve begun carving designs into wooden dowels, and rolling ink directly onto the paper. It’s like a reduction print in cylindrical form. Ancient printmakers used that technique to transfer imagery onto clay tablets.
BIO
I was born in New Bedford, MA in 1982. Growing up around maritime history develops in you a sense of adventure and a thirst for discovery. I have spent many hiking and sketching trips in my ancestral archipelago of the Azores; the dramatic cliffs, volcanic vents and sulfuric caverns have had a profound effect on my imagination and picture making sensibilities.
I received my BFA from UMass Dartmouth, and spent my Junior year in Lisbon, Portugal, where I focused on Intaglio and Typography. My professors in Lisbon encouraged me the take more chances with my mark making, and to trust my intuition.
I currently reside in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and draw from the landscape for daily inspiration in crafting my own worlds.
Graduate studies at Vermont College of Fine Arts begin in January, 2020. Drawing, Painting and Printmaking continue to be the foundation of my practice.
