“My 50^th Year” is made of 366 pieces of beadwork I wove, one per day, beginning on the day after my 49^th birthday and completed on the day I turned 50. In addition to beads, the other primary material used in this piece are pages of daily journals I kept when I was a teenager. The piece is an expression of how we incrementally age and grow each day over the course of our lives.

Red Orange and Vivid
Violet (Crayola series) (and detail, 2008)
12” H x 11” W x 7.5” D
Hand-dyed cotton rope, glass beads.

2011 finalist for City Arts Magazine's Art Walk Award

Handweavers Guild of America’s Small Expressions 2009 exhibition

Yellow Green and Razzle
Dazzle Rose (Crayola series) (and detail, 2008)
13” H x  10” W x 9” D
Hand-dyed cotton rope, glass beads.

Web and Flow exhibition, Textile Center Gallery, Minneapolis

Turquoise Blue and Peach (Crayola series) (and detail, 2008)
12” H x 10” W x 6.5” D
Hand-dyed cotton rope, glass beads.

CRAFT USA ‘08 National Craft Triennial, Silvermine Guild Galleries

Alien Nest Egg #1 (and detail, 2008)
10.5” H x 13” W x 9.5” D
Hand-dyed cotton rope, glass beads.

Containers, Containment and Contents exhibition, Art Council of Snohomish

Dancing Hands 2008 exhibition, Springfield Museum

Dancing Hands 2008 exhibition, Springfield Museum

Second Place Award, Handweavers Guild of America's River of Grass 2008 exhibition

Handweavers Guild of America's River of Grass 2008 exhibition

Handweavers Guild of America's Small Expressions 2008 exhibition

Soft ‘n’ Stone (2005)
4 ½” x 4” x 4”
Glass seed beads, freshwater pearls, lacquered pearls, crocheted and felted wool yarn.

To Hold Within: Redefining the Container exhibition, Waterworks Gallery.(Collection of Ruth Offen)

Soft 'n' Stone is part of a series of sculptural experiments combining beadwork with knitting and crochet.

Tribute to Andy Goldsworthy (2005)
8” x 5” x 3”
Glass seed beads, knitted and felted wool yarn.

Andy Goldsworthy is one of my art heroes. His ability to spend many hours building a stone or leaf sculpture only to see it destroyed by tide or wind inspired me to make this piece. Many hours of beadwork are hidden within the folds of wool, never to be seen. The satisfaction is in the doing, not in the result.

Annette (with detail, 2004)
9 ½” x 5” x 3”
Freshwater pearls, glass beads, resin bead, seed beads, wire, lead fishing weights.

Annette was named for a favorite quotation by Julia Cameron: “Leap and a net will appear.” Having wings and a tail, Annette can both fly and swim, neither of which I can do, which makes her well-equipped as my artistic guardian angel.

The Transformer series of sculptural pieces are also jewelry. For a view of Transformer 1 in its bracelet form, please see Jewelry.

Transformer 2 (2004)
6” x 3” (flat)
Freshwater pearls, assorted glass beads, seed beads.
 

Absolutely Beads 2004 Exhibition

The Transformer series of sculptural pieces are also jewelry. For a view of Transformer 2 in its bracelet form, please see Jewelry.

The Four Walls of Fear (2003)
9” x 9”
Cotton fabric, rubberstamping, seed beads.

This small art quilt was inspired by a journal entry that prompted me to make a life-changing decision: leaving my corporate job to pursue the creative imperative. I wanted to preserve the entry with an art medium that was longer-lasting than paper.
 

Published in Material Visions: A Gallery of Miniature Art Quilts, 2004

Web of My Evening (2004)
8” x 4” x 1½”
Assorted glass beads, freshwater pearls, seed beads, fabric lining.

Second Place Award, Puget Sound Bead Festival Beaded Inspirations 2004

Absolutely Beads 2004 Exhibition