The first painting just happened naturally. I tend to be overly decorative with my work. Too many colors, shapes and I wanted to shift from the decorative to include more monochromatic like imagery. I also love working with circles, dots and open-like weave. I guess this comes from my love of fabric design. So, the first in the series began with a simple stone-like edging and then using the recycled pulp and finishing the surface holes with paint.

Painting number 1

Painting Number 1 was exciting. I loved the color, I loved working with the pulp and using all of my used photocopy junk paper. I put each piece of paper in the paper shredder and then took out the paper, wet it and then added the glue. So, after this painting, I sketched a few more ideas in my sketch book and then used these ideas for painting number two, three, and four.

Painting number 2

Painting number 3

Painting number 4

Over the past year I have been working on a series of artworks focusing on combining recycled pulp paper and images from nature, leaves, stones, circles, and dots, etc. I love to mix organic shape like images with different surface treatments. The painting on the right was the first in the series. It just happened naturally.

I have always loved working with papier-mache' because you can work with strips, pulp, and combine the elements to create interesting surface treatments.

So, in January, 2009, I started shifting from sculptures to paintings again and began painting landscapes. I was working on nature themes in acrylic paint and then just got frustrated with the boring landscape type images, even though many of my family members did like the landscapes. I did make two successful ones over the three frustrating months of painting. The on the top and the painting on the left are the successful ones out of about 12 paintings that I attempted over those months. Then, I had an epiphany. Why not integrate my papier-mache' techniques within the paintings. The pulp was used to create the leaves of the trees and I rather liked the first attempted seen on the right. So, I tried a few more, in fact, I tried about 8 more - still not happy with them. But, with a lot of trial and error, I came to the painting that I was happy with, and the beginning of a new series.

I will attempt to share this process - the ups and downs of a sculptor, painter, and fiber artist.