It was after I had moved to Kings Mountain that I started to create my assemblages. Kings Mountain is located between Half Moon Bay and Woodside in the northern part of the Santa Cruz mountain range. It functions as a kind of natural buffer zone between the concentrated activity of Silicon Valley, and the empty expanse of the Pacific. I have hiked these mountains, taking in breathtaking vistas, seen the forested canyons and was surprised by the sudden fog rolling in. During these hikes I saw many pictures chronicling the endless cycle of birth, death and rebirth.
The Peninsula landscape is a powerful stimulant, but it is not just nature alone that compels; it is also we humans leaving our marks in nature that has always fascinated me. I take my inspiration from the evidence I find of that juxtaposition.
Using found objects, the assemblage is a stage upon which I transform the ordinary into an object of attention—and as the ordinary object transcends the commonplace, it becomes a metaphor for how we, as individuals, transcend our ordinary existence. The interplay of color, geometry, ordinary objects and surface textures creates an imitative tension, for instance, like that created by the demands of the daily routine and the longing for peace.
My inspiration comes from a fallen leaf, a rusty rebar; a crack in the asphalt of a parking lot might trigger an initial mental image. I further develop these ideas through rough sketches. The actual assemblage is created on wood panel.
I do not assign meaning to my pieces, as their significance is relative to the viewer. But rather hope to evoke and provoke an emotional reaction. The absence of a title forces the observer to engage the work itself. There is no bias only what the observer brings to it.
With my work I hope I can show the observer a different view of nature and to rekindle interest in the beautiful landscape of our shared human experience.