The process of making art is intuitive. My work is often similar to responsive or reactive drawing except instead of using graphite I’m using thread and mixed media with fabric. I begin intuitively making bold quick decisions. The further along I get with the piece, the more deliberate my marks become.
I grew up in Papua New Guinea and my experiences with color and textures in that unique culture continue to influence my work and sensibilities. Colors in the sun were bold and saturated, but the rainforests could be dark with incredible variance of value in the green hues. A few of my most visceral memories are of thatched leaf roofs, woven bark and bamboo walls, twirling ferns, pungent red annatto seeds, and clays of differing colors embedded in the creek beds.
After gathering seeds with my village friends to use as beads, we spent hours pushing needles through the holes in the seeds and making jewelry on the bark floor of our open porch. At the markets I watched women sewing meri blouses -dresses with big sleeves using bold patterns and clashing trim. As soon as I could reach the pedal of my mom’s treadle sewing machine, I sewed skirts and shorts for kids in the village. I was introduced to cross stitching, but preferred simple embroidery.
After moving to the States, I was inspired by fashion design and continued to sew clothing for myself and others. I studied painting and photography in art school, but my passion for sewing prevails. In 2017 I began to make art that incorporated sewing to combine all my loves of pattern, fabric, texture, line and color.