Oyster Bed Buffet V

Fabric is endlessly fascinating. It excites the senses as it moves and pushes the artist and the collector, to fully embrace the sight sound, touch and even smell of the cloth; it is not passive.

Intuitive dyeing and printing, guide me through the layers of multiple colors and images that create my work. It starts when yards of pure white silk satin organza arrive at the studio. I custom mix MX fiber reactive dye colors to make dye baths and then clamp, stitch or fold the fabric to create a resist. I completely immerse the cloth, multiple times, in the different baths to create depth and mystery. Then using any combinations of personally designed silk screens, rubber stamps, stencils, brushes, paint rollers - found objects such as bubble wrap, pine bark, tires or grids-I screen, paint or roll color onto the fabric adding multiple patterns of interest. On many pieces I complete the work by hand painting and add gold leaf or foil. The result is a vivid original piece of art that combines both representational and abstract imagery.