I was introduced to woodturning while in high school, but it wasn’t until 22 years later that I again stepped in front of a lathe. In 1998, I sold my Vocational Rehabilitation business so I could be home with my growing family. At the time, my husband presented me with a lathe of my own, but I wouldn’t have the opportunity to work with it regularly until my children reached school age.
A brief exploration in pottery introduced me to the importance of form and design, the foundation to any embellishment of my turning, be it branding, pyrography, coloring, texturing, or carving. I endeavor to make wood pieces that pursue excellence of form and beg to be picked up and caressed.
When exploring a source of inspiration for my surface enhancements, I looked to my interests in Native American and prehistoric art. Since childhood I have been fascinated by the creative expression of native North American cultures, petroglyphs of the Columbia Plateau of the Northwest, as well as the cave art of Lascaux, France and Altamira, Spain. My artwork reflects their influences.
