Cutting paper can transform and adapt to whatever you can create. ​The shapes of silhouette figures in motion have been a long time interest of mine.

I was invited by curators Kelley Bell and Melissa Cormier to participate in The Yonder Cabinet exhibition. Each artist was given a box to create a diorama based on literature that inspires them.  Artists also read an excerpt from their chosen book on The Yonder Cabinet website. As the curators note, “The end goal for the The Yonder Cabinet is to establish a collection of work and a community of artists founded on their love of books and the written word, and to encourage others to enjoy reading and to have an open and active imagination. “

I am fascinated by Venice, Italy and Commissario Guido Brunetti's home and work life in that City. This enchanting city is the backdrop for the series of stories that Donna Leon weaves.

My book was Acqua Alta by Donna Leon - a murder mystery involving stolen artifacts, artworld corruption, elegant palazzos and the brutal beating of one of Brunetti’s close friends, an archeologist. Brunetti’s investigation leads him to a questionable museum curator, who is found dead in his office bludgeoned with an artifact. It all takes place when the city experiences acqua alta (high water in Italian), a winter high tide when lagoon waters flood areas of the city, enveloping both the city and story with tension.

Leon contrasts the violence of murder investigations with Brunetti’s loving family life. I enjoy reading about the detective’s family life with his professor wife and two children. The descriptions of delicious dinners and his concern, warmth and love for his wife and family release the tension of brutality giving you breathing space.

This garden gate was commissioned by a Bolton Hill neighbor and installed at their beautiful garden. The setting created a challenge. They wanted to maintain their present chainlink fence posts, so the gate had to be designed to accomodate out-of-plumb posts in order to function - to open and close smoothly. It all worked out thanks to the engineering help from Paul Daniel.

During the many months of the Covid-19 quarantine in 2020, I found comfort in the meditative process of cutting paper by hand and tying it to my interest and passion for nature. My perception of time is greatly altered in this process of cutting. 

Fascinated by botanical forms, I create work that embraces the fluidity and mysteries of nature, reveling in curves and the interlacing plant or cellular forms. Vascular systems, in natural forms such as leaves, with their complex networks of interconnected loops inspire me. 
I immerse myself in the world of plants in my garden.

The pieces Monarch Mambo,Vertigo & Ring Around the Rosy are image transfers of large elephant ear leaves from my garden that involved rubbings of the leaf surfaces with Conte crayon.
I lost a nephew-in-law to Covid19 in April 2020.  He had seen Monarch Mambo before he died  and noted the relationship between his lungs and the leaf network. Vertigo had the feeling of being off kilter and Ring Around the Rosy - horrifyingly over 400,000 people fell.

In Daydream. I was attracted to a combination of natural structures and man patterns and Sheltering involved multiple layers of heavy weight paper cut outs. In these drawings, some parts are pre-determined; others come into play purely by chance. None are laser cut. 

My desire is to draw viewers into the mysteries of nature as well as the process, engaging them in discovery. 

Photography by Joseph Hyde

 2019 Nature Walk Gate, Ladew Topiary Gardens, Monkton, MD
The gate design was inspired by the habitats along the Nature Walk and incorporates a variety of shapes inspired by leaves, wildlife such as butterflies, birds and bees as well as water plants plus the guide Tully the turtle. The gate created a lively and colorful identifier for the Nature Walk entrance. Positive and negative shapes were cut from aluminum plate and powder coated.

Visit to see topiaries, art in the meadow, concerts and the nature walk - it's a great place. https://www.ladewgardens.com

 2019 two benches for Alexander House, Silver Spring. Dogwwod & Fern benches.

Sassy bench was designed for Brookside Gardens. The Sassafras tree has three distinctly different leaves. I missed that info in grade school. It fascinated me, so I used the three leaves as the cut-outs on the bench back and painted it bright red!

Site specific sculpture - entrances, railings, gates and other amenities for urban streetscapes

Photography by John Dean