The Ancestral Boat and Water Patterns

The ancestral boat is the last remaining boat from my childhood. Symbolically, it stands in as a remnant of my growing up years within a blended family, and for myself. The lake cradling the ancestral boat, provides healing and creative renewal, while I express more fully my relationship to this place. The “man/machine-made” boat and pier are drawn solely in graphite pencil; the surrounding water and lake floor are drawn in color pencil. These were deliberate decisions. And with nearly any subject, I am particularly drawn towards the relationship between positive and negative space, and to the interaction between cast shadows and their corresponding subject matter. Focusing on the surface of lake water alone, with all its perpetually changing rhythmic patterns, also fascinates me - and are also reflective of our ever-changing world.

The Multi-Dimensional Landscapes

The theme, “Returning Home” refers to my literal journey and my spiritual quest for healing and belonging to a blended family. The boat, environs, and sticks are very personal sources of inspiration. “That which is left behind” are symbols of home and self. All refer to my childhood.

The “Lake View” series are the beginning of my expanded notion of "landscape". With “Lake View I”, I am focusing on the surface patterns of lake water in the upper canvas, deliberately eliminating any reference to a “horizon line”, and focusing on the lake floor in the bottom canvas. My following use of multi-dimensional panels emphasize depth and serve to present different cross-sectional points of view - expressing how we actually experience each view in time and space. In “Lake View IV”, I explore different aspects of my eye scanning over a familiar panoramic view. I am drawn to real and implied space, shadow shapes, patterns and reflections whether the approach be realistic or abstract.