2023

My studio practice, a ritualization that celebrates and questions my cultural inheritance as a woman, depicts the dichotomies of my heritage through the combination of ceramics and fiber. The vessel, symbolically tied to the traditions and expectations of womanhood, acts as a canvas for a discussion between materials and processes deeply rooted in the craft traditions of Mexico. I simultaneously celebrate and question my identity across the generational and cultural boundaries in my life.

This work is inspired by my observations and interests in plants and other natural forms. The surface consists of multiple painted layers of glaze and slip, then kissed with the uninhibited effects of a wood and soda firing. The piece is meant to be ambiguous and to evoke something in the viewer.

I search for the symbolic image that speaks to the tension we humans experience between our need to strive and question, and our longing for rest, protection, and answers. These pieces are meant to offer us company as we search for acceptance and peace. Because I want the sculpture to connect on a nonverbal level, I take my direction regarding line, form, and color from my own emotional place. My experience is one of facilitating the emergence into form of a being that already exists.

Together, a Part explores processes of deconstruction and reassembly to understand the consequences of human attachment. My work is the externalization of my emotional landscape - consisting of cracks, remnants, and traces. These broken vessels function as asynchronous moments which have found a home amongst each other. I am reaching for these severed parts to construct a whole, to find sense in rhythms of loss.

Combining disparate elements into new forms of harmony, these narrative mosaics explore well-being, womanhood, and passages, using irony, humor, and metaphor to create the unexpected.

After being married for 50 long years, marriage seemed like two people making a single tower with great effort. Antique silk was used to make a traditional Korean pillow shape to show intimacy and the accumulation of time.

The body is the vessel in which the soul resides. Through rendering of the figure, I intend to make the intangible spirit visible. 

This sculpture was created to offer hope and acknowledge the survivorship of grief for a loved one. The calla lily, which represents resurrection, stands out in black against the ring around it. This flower can grow almost anywhere. I was attracted to its ability to be resilient in harsh environments. The red calla lily, in the hand of the figure, symbolizes courage. Seeking solace during loss comes from the courage we find within ourselves to live again.

Deep Sea Scroll VII is a reflection on a passage from the New Testament (Mark 7:13). The encrustations that spread across the red letters are obscuring the third commandment which states not to take God's name in vain. The scroll is lost at sea, as a symbol for the many distractions, superficial entertainments, and abandoned traditions that drown and nullify the teachings of the Lord.

My work is the culmination of my love of nature and clay.