About THE WORK

My investigations into portraiture through the use of original source documents and related material has its roots in the desire to record and capture time while exploring memory in order to establish identities and reveal new perspectives. Even as portraits typically evoke a likeness, filtered through personality or mood, they also form a historical record that tells an incomplete story. Documents are nonjudgmental and reflect many forgotten aspects of personal history as they relate to society, cultural practices and personal idiosyncrasies. They are evidence of the multiple aspects of a point in time; building blocks to the whole. The reuse of these precious papers is with the intent of repurposing them for future reflection. They become not just the surface of the portrait, but materialize as inherent elements of the narrative. Words, times and dates of particular importance blend into shadows in order to tell the story. 

The bird travelogues are represented by a native species from an area where I’ve traveled and the papers included reflect my experiences there. That work led to Memento Tori - focusing on extinct bird species, and Birds in Conflict Zones - featuring local birds living in and representative of global war zones.

 Character Studies are collages comprised of papers on which I have written letters to the subject using rubber stamps and handwriting.  These images are the amalgam of outward appearance and inward introspection.