I create unnaturally colorful, richly textured, sculptures and installations by transforming and combining disparate collections of everyday stuff into forms of fantastical ecosystems and uncanny organisms that struggle, persist, and thrive in some parallel universe. I use familiar objects and surfaces from the home to explore complexities within themes of memory, childhood, and identity.

Within many family home environments, an array of objects reflects the values and styles of different generations. Seemingly unremarkable items on display may actually be sentimental touchstones, or souvenirs, connected to people and places from the past, while other similar stuff really is just casual clutter that accumulates. Seasonal decorations and disposable ephemera leftover from the holidays may clash with stuffy family heirlooms, but both suggest some allegiance toward tradition. Certain itchy blankets or sweaters were made with care by the hands of a relative or loved one. Other softer ones may have been manufactured by strangers enduring appalling conditions. Piles of disfavored toys and worn-out clothing are stuffed into bags in the purgatory of a closet before they are finally sent to the thrift store. All these objects, and more, have been unwitting witnesses to our private moments and secret selves. They construct and complicate the foundation for the ever-shifting landscape of our subconscious.

I engage in meticulous processes for taking objects like these apart and intuitive processes for putting them back together, as an analogy for abuse and resilience. Through repetitive, often meditative processes, I transform a seemingly incongruous collection of found or discarded 'things’ into 'raw materials' that I can build with. I deconstruct or modify their forms, creating new surface textures while maintaining aspects of the objects' recognizability. I intuitively combine these modified materials, guided by color, texture, and size, and shape them into fantastical forms that appear to be caught in moments of growth and change.