Beyond the Pane, Paritally open Window

(22" x 16") Oil paint on panel with mixed media textures (top), Blind drawings on BFK (bottom)

Wave Window for Sacks (22" x 16"), Oil paint on textures (top panel) Ink, pastel, and colored pencil on BFK paper (bottom panel)

Apricot Pearl Braille, (22" x 16) Oil paint on panel with mixed media textures (top), Blind drawing on BFK (bottom)

Window: Red/Blue Curtains for Sacks, (22" x 16"), Oil paint on textures (top panel) Ink, pastel, and colored pencil on BFK paper (bottom panel)

Heart Fly Window, (16" x 24") Oil paint on panel with mixed media textures (center), Blind drawings on BFK (sides)

Hidden Pearl on braille with net, (22" x 16) Oil paint on panel with mixed media textures (top), Blind drawing on BFK (bottom)

Window One for Sacks, (22" x 16"), Oil paint on textures (top) Ink, pastel, and colored pencil on BFK paper (botton)

Bulb Shoot Window, (22" x 16) Oil paint on panel with mixed media textures (top), Blind drawings on BFK (bottom)

Anchovy Dance, Oil paint on linen, (50” x 38”)

Dried fish served as the model for this painting. As the anchovies headed toward rot, their colors became more iridescent. I tried to replicate this shimmering through layers of translucent oil paints. The crunchy texture of the anchovies is evident, but unfortunately as I handled the fragile fish, they kept breaking apart and falling to the floor.

Canna Seed Baskets, Oil on canvas, (52” x 36”)

The composition of this painting comes from a dried clump of decaying seeds and leaves of the Canna Lily. After the flowers die off, the regenerative baskets appear. Its woven container, like the one I carry to the farmer's market, is full of black seeds resembling miniature bowling balls about to fall out of frayed burlap sacks.

Visible Strings, (Magnolia grandiflora), Oil on linen, (62” x 36”)

Attracted by an unrecognizable bit of decaying matter, I observed the structure and lines of this dried magnolia pod. Working in reverse chronology, this painting shows various points in the passage of time. And, of course the word play on Invisible String Theory is no coincidence.

Shapeshifter Protea Oil on canvas, (52” x 36”)

During observation, this specimen went through many transformations: finding its structure proved to be both baffling and intriguing. Ribbons unfurled, pins sprouted, and seeds appeared. Only after completion of the painting did the specimen’s name make sense to me: the mythological Proteus was a shapeshifter.

Double Protea, Oil on canvas, (52” x 36”)

As we were in the early stages of a pandemic, I began this painting based on the images of Covid-19 there were in the news. But then the painting transformed into a study of the shape-shifting pincushion protea. The image displays simultaneous views, one up close and one farther away.

Split Chestnut Burr, (32” x 20”) Oil paint on linen

Here the sharp needles protecting the inner sanctum of the chestnut seeds act as protection. The image has been described as "almost scary," humorously monstrous," and "like an alien." In searching for the natural patterns of decay, I am noticing dead plants are not stagnant, but fully animated. Nature is powerful. And painful if you step on it in the wrong way.

Twisting Bulb, Oil on linen, (32" x 20)

My curiosity about the cycle of decay began several years ago as I observed a dried bulb on my friend’s coffee table. In it, I saw an ephemeral beauty. The motion of its twisting, curling leaves told the story of its graceful demise. I kept wanting to look closer and closer, as if nature’s secrets and mysteries might reveal themselves, if only I could get in close enough. To that end I used watchmaker’s lenses to study the complex anatomy of seeds and plants.

Regeneration, (Rhododendron), Oil on canvas, (31” x 21”), Oil paint on canvas

In a vibrant ecosystem, the process of decay is a cyclical dance in which the various agents play their parts. Sun, rain, wind, and insects all have assigned roles and are inscribed into the choreography. Even as the drooping blooms fall, the smallest seed peeks out, hinting at its potential for new growth.

Cartesian Vortices, Oil on linen, (32" x 20")

By observing drying onions, I discovered a parallel to Rene Descartes’ theory of movement among celestial bodies. Based on the scientist’s 17th-c. diagram of ether, my painting evokes the invisible forces that animate things large and small: not only the heavenly planets, but also the earthly onion.

Flotation Devices in Crisis, Oil on Canvas, (62" x 36")

The subject of this painting is at once small enough to fit in the palm of a hand and large enough to exist outside our planet. Its background contains huge cloud formations around Jupiter, and the purple bladder shape comes from the tiny Sargassum seaweed common in the Atlantic Ocean. Its air-filled bladder is helpful in keeping the plant afloat, providing food for ocean life and birds. Ironically, as catastrophic climate change brings flooding, tornadoes, heat waves, and fires, the lifesaving bladder shape offered me hope in its resilience and resourcefulness.

Unraveling Sea Oat, (Uniola paniculata), Oil on linen, (62” x 36”)

Inspiration comes from a small, decayed root found in the dunes of the Atlantic coast. Revealed to me in its seeds are the tools for animating a multitude of sea creatures, and the unraveling pattern of one tiny root recalled the delicate balance in our endangered surroundings.

Seasoning, Oil on canvas, (60" x 42")

One fall day, a gust of wind blew the leaves from the trees behind my studio. The urgency of the season whispered to me this metaphor as the leaves were making their final descent. There were so many that they appeared to be sprinkling from a giant salt shaker or scattering a handful from a chef’s fingers, seasoning the woods in splendor.

"Fading Fall", Oil on canvas, (42" x 60")  The natural energy of decay, destruction, and regeneration had a palpable urgency to it this year. As my best friend and mentor was losing her memory, it felt as if I were disappearing.

"Curling Cascade" Oil on canvas, (52" x 36") 

Pacific Kelp Tangle, Oil on Linen, 62" x 36"

The health of the ocean’s kelp indicates the well-being of the oceans and sea creatures. I was surprised to learn that the kelp that washes up on the beaches of San Francisco changes color, depending on the seasons

Kiwi Kniphofia, Oil on Linen, (62" x 36")

Viewed from up close and from far away, the Kniphofia (Red hot poker plant) revealed the passage of time as it decayed from bottom to top in my garden.

Alien Seed Pod, Oil on canvas, (36" x 22")

Magnolia Pod Magnified, Oil paint on linen on panel, (14" x 14")

Canna Seed Baskets Magnified, Oil paint on linen on panel, (14" x 14")

Sweetgum Ball Surprise,  (62” x 36”) Oil on Linen, (detail)

The very annoying — and painful to step on — ball from the sweetgum tree is pictured here. While observing and waiting for a green Sweetgum ball to open, I received a surprise one day in the studio. The individual sections opened, revealing hundreds of tiny feather-shaped seeds, along with their own fertilizer in the pod.

Sweetgum Ball Painting

Oil on linen on panel, (12" x 12")

Lion's Tail, Oil paint on linen on panel (14" x 14")

Protea Pins Magnified, Oil paint on linen on panel, (14" x 14")

Protea Pins, Oil paint on linen on panel, (14" x 14")