Artist Statement

My work examines the interconnectedness between the physical systems within our bodies and the systems of living that we create socially, institutionally and mechanically. Printmaking allows me to layer multiple images in order to examine the systems and connections that define our lives. Silkscreen is most often an industrial, mass produced art form. Conversely, intaglio often emphasizes the use of the human hand. By combining these processes I am able to explore the points in which mechanization and humanity collide, coexist and conflict.

My most recent series Waterways was conceived of during an artist residency at Anchor Graphics in Chicago. This series was inspired by articles I had read before traveling to Chicago that addressed humanity’s impact on freshwater fish populations. I became interested in the many medications we ingest on a daily basis and the byproducts that we excrete into the water. Through in depth conversations with a Chicago-based fresh water biologist researching this issue I was able to learn about the impact this is having on the waterways in Illinois. I created a series of prints juxtaposing bathroom plumbing, the human excretory system and topographical maps of waterways in Illinois. This series has since extended and evolved into drawings and animations exploring the systems that provide potable water that, as urban dwellers, we take for granted.

The series, Internal Combustion, layers lungs and automobile exhaust systems connecting cars, transportation and the impact urban sprawl has on the environment and our bodies. The intaglio printed body parts in Expansion are layered on top of an aerial view of suburban sprawl in Arizona. This work was created after a trip to Arizona during which I was impacted by the amount of development taking place in previously untouched desert.

The series entitled Levittown is an extension of my examination of urban sprawl and the American suburb. This series of work was inspired by conversations with my Grandmother about the role of women and the suburbs during the 1940’s and 1950’s. My Grandmother moved into a typical Cape-Codder in Levittown while my mother was a toddler in the early 1950’s. Levittown is viewed by many as the predecessor to the modern American suburb. Silkscreening on uniform plexiglass constructions enabled me to mimic the repetition of cheaply built, mass-produced homes found in many new housing developments. This series extended to explore the relationships between suburban lifestyles and the machines and appliances that populate our homes as seen in the collaboration, Yellow Wallpaper.

Home