Artistic Statement

The purpose of my work as an artist is to create an alternative and contemporary religious imagery through imaginative, stimulating, and spiritually uplifting, though not sectarian, art appropriate to the present time. I am primarily a symbolist and colorist.

I consider my work as an artist to be the communication of important ideas, thoughts, feelings and emotions, and to be my spiritual vocation. Figures, texts, and ideas from my own and other religious traditions are used as subjects of interpretation as well as reflection on contemporary life, interior landscapes, and the natural environment.

I use various textile techniques, including weaving, batik, painting on silk, fabric collage, and free-form embroidery. I also work extensively with with mosaics, which are sometimes combined with my textile art. All of these media and techniques appear in my installations for worship. I recently completed a large permanent installation, "Song of Justice," for the Bethea Welcome Center at the Lake Junaluska Assembly in North Carolina.

Brief History

I began my work in Atlanta in the 1980s. From 1995 to 2001 I was a Resident Artist in the Theology and Arts Program at Andover Newton Theological School, where I maintained my studio in The Meeting House, an historic building now housing the school's Center for Theology and the Arts. I have studied with artists in Milwaukee, Atlanta, Boston, Asheville, NC, Heidelberg, Germany, and Bangalore, India. Since my retirement from Andover Newton I have continued my work based at my home studio in western North Carolina.

Exhibitions

My work has been widely exhibited in the US in educational institutions, galleries, and churches. I have also had exhibitions in Germany and South Africa. Many of my present installations appear in the First United Methodist Church in Waynesville, NC, as well as at the nearby Bethea Welcome Center.

Work in Collections and Publications

My works are in private and institutional collections in the United States and Germany. A large commissioned work hangs in the Durham Reading Room of the Pitts Theology Library, Emory University. Other works are at the Needham Congregational Church, Needham, Massachusetts, and at Andover Newton Theological School, where my work was also featured in various school publications.

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