The Offering (48″x48″): I love pieces that develop in their own time. As these paintings grow with me over months, my challenges, wishes, joys and sorrows get embedded in the layers. The painting becomes a time capsule that captures who I am and how I’m feeling as the piece evolves.

I love some of the color and energy in the earlier versions, but these passages, while pretty, were meaningless. I relish paintings where the struggle leads me to unknown places and pushes me beyond my capabilities. At their best, my paintings feel like an archeological discovery, as if I’m unearthing something that’s always been there. The finished piece is something I never could (or would) set out to paint. So these origin stories remind me of how a painting came to be…

June 15, 2023: I am both here and not here…a meditation on impermanence that is resonating with me today. And so I embedded it in the first layer of this 48″x48″ piece.

June 18: Starting to build up surface history that I can later work back into. Happy to be working large once again…

June 22: Working on large pieces in a small studio makes it hard to stand back and view the painting from a distance. So posting progress pics on Instagram scales down the image, allowing me to troubleshoot compositional problems and figure out where the piece wants to go next…🤓

June 25: Very early stages yet, but after a brief TimeOut, we’re starting to listen to each other…

June 27: Course correction. At long last, the 48×48 WIP breaks free. Believe it or not, this ugly mess has me breathing much deeper and freer over here.

June 28: I made the rookie mistake of falling in love with the piece way too early. I was editing and fine tuning when I should’ve still been taking big swings. So I painted it over it last night. Today I painted my truth, and I’ll continue to do so til I end up with a piece that takes my breath away. Onward to the light!!✨️

July 13: Still dwelling in the darkness, but I’m starting to see the light.

July 24: Happy to be back in the studio for the first time in weeks. Starting to swing this dark piece back towards the light…

August 16: Returned to this piece after taking some time apart. And now, with fresh eyes, the way forward is clear. The steps between here and the finish line will be slight but mighty…

September 12: While I’m used to having paintings take a few months to complete, I’ve never knowingly set out to make works that will evolve over 1-2 years. It’s interesting how this allowance shifts my perception of “time” and “progress.”

November 9: After weeks of timid tweaks to fix trouble spots, today was my “Make It Work” moment. The right side wasn’t working and demanded a serious overhaul. I took some big risks, and spent the day pushing and pulling this piece as we slowly found our way towards a resolution. And then suddenly, with one final move, I stood back, exhaled, and said “There you are!” Excited to have “The Offering” finished in time for my feature show (“Sanctuary”) which opens in Seattle next week!