Grass-Stained + Summer-Rained

The poet Mary Oliver is a big source of inspiration for me. She experienced nature the same way I do–as permission to pause and notice. And she also used her art to express and give others the experience she had.

Her poem “The Invitation” struck me and spurred me to create this mini-collection. This collection is an intentional shift to a minimal approach. I left large swaths of raw canvas untouched, and I stripped down my use of natural elements to see what happened.  I infused unusual and normally unseen natural elements such as grass stains and puddles of water mixed with paints and inks. Letting the water take the colors where it wanted naturally and surprise me as it dried. The results are a collection full of organic shapes and movements. This collection is of small moments that serve as an invitation as Mary Oliver’s poem says, “to spend time, to linger on your very busy and important day”.