I am a collage and mixed media artist. I began studying art about 15 years ago, while working full time as Director of a program for individuals with mental health and other challenges seeking employment. I took advantage of the excellent teachers in my own backyard. Mixed media and collage became my passion. Collage making is like solving a puzzle: the pieces and elements have to fit together to make an image that works. It’s always a thrill when I feel like I hit the right combination. I use bright, vivid colors that resonate with me and draws the attention of the viewer. Composition is paramount and I most often use rectangular shapes and strong angles that overlap and intersect each other.In my photo collages I often raise sections of the piece giving the work a 3-dimensional quality. I work on a small scale, the largest pieces being 11 x 14, with much time devoted to little details.
My collages have a definite sense of playfulness. In one series, I used museum guides with bright colors and glossy paper that I used to create galleries in my own fantasy art museums. My work has been nostalgic, creating memory collages on personal themes such as my parents’ honeymoon in Atlantic City or my experience as a Peace Corps Volunteer. I also create assemblages in boxes containing altered objects combined in unexpected ways. I use themes having personal significance including physical wellbeing and sewing, and tea drinking. I always leave the top of the box, slightly ajar, to invite the viewer in to see what’s inside.
While looking at one of my pieces at a recent show, a patron commented that she really couldn’t tell that the scene had been created although she said she knew that the buildings in the piece were not really near each other. Success!
Education
1973 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI M.S., Rehabilitation Counseling
1971 University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI B.A., English
Certifications
C.P.R.P., Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Professional C.R.C., Certified Rehabilitation Counselor
Continuing Education
Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA, classes since 2003
Fantasy Collage, Leah MacDonald, 2016 Photography, Rich Dunoff Art of Collage, Andrea Snyder, 4 years Art of Collage, Francine Shore, 2 semesters Printmaking, Christine Stoughton, 2 semesters Drawing and Oil Painting, Henry Martin
Community Art Center, Wallingford, PA
Mixed Media and Collage Techniques, Nancy Barch, 2011 - 2013
Collection
Commissions
Private, Temple Off Broad Mixed Media Collage
Private, Canadian Coast Mixed Media
Affiliation
Philadelphia/Tri-State Artists Equity Philadelphia CollageWorks Da Vinci Art Alliance Main Line Art Center
2019 First Place in Photography, APAC Annual Show, Avalon, NJ
2018 First Place, Mixed Media, APAC Art Show, Avalon, NJ
2015 Honorable Mention, Beauty Gallery, Newtown Square, PA
2014 Grant Recipient, to provide 10 "Recovery Through Collage" workshops to mental health programs around Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health
Merit Award, Spring Show, Delaware Valley Art League, Valley Forge, PA
2013 Judge's Choice Award, Gladwyne Library League Art Show, Gladwyne, PA
2012 Gilbert Printing Services Award, Member Show, Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
Exhibitions
Solo
2021 Penn Medicine, Philadelphia, PA Upcoming
Group
2020 Artists Equity Fall Show Unstoppable, Cheltenham Arts Center, Cheltenham, PA
