The Invisible Thread

Forests are a beautiful place of connectedness. Not only are they a vital part of ecosystems, but they themselves are connected. Trees can talk to each other by a network, sending chemicals and slow pulsing electrical signals.

As a celebration of this connection, this painting was done using a pattern of verticals and circles on the surface of the canvas to suggest space and depth, while playfully using pattern to add further interest.

Through photosynthesis, trees take carbon dioxide out of the air and change it into oxygen, thus allowing us to breathe. In this way, our very breath is connected to the world around us.

To create the feeling of light shining through the woods, I have painted a background in warm golden shades of yellow punctuated with green, which I’ve allowed to drip down the canvas and create depth. The foreground of cooler tones and patterned spacing of trees, interspersed with dabs and circles encourages the eye to travel across the field of view.

As one of the oldest animals on the planet, jellyfish can be found pulsing along many ocean currents. A free-floating marine creature, the jellyfish quite literally “goes with the flow”.

I began this piece by painting a base of mauve and coral orange, followed by multiple dabs of blue and green to create a mottled effect, before finishing the painting with two impressionistic jellyfish.

This depiction of the end of a perfect day, where one just feels a deep sense of satisfaction

In this piece I have used the stark contrast of opposing colors to create dimension. The overlapping circles and dripping paint add to the depth of this painting.

The change of seasons is a gradual change, a slow progression of warmer into cooler days.

This painting is a gradual progression from left to right of mostly warmer tones, to mostly cooler ones. The trees are painted with a warmer mottled layer of paint overlaid with a cooler tone. The multiple layers of paint drips, dabs, and circles give the piece a sense of movement.

This painting was inspired by a moment in time, during a very difficult period in my life, when I sensed everything was going to be okay. It was a poignant moment for me and one that I’ve tried to capture in art multiple times. The light shone through the wood and glistened off the trees in such a way that I could see “the invisible thread.” The thread would continue to steer me towards better times in the future; I believe this was a message from the Divine.

This painting is an attempt at a painted snapshot of that moment.. The golden yellow paint is rhythmically dabbed between the portrayed forest trunks that echo a rhythm of their own and are further bejeweled with small patches of gold.

The rainforests on Earth are some of the more biodiverse places on the planet. More than 1500 flowering plants can be found in 4 square miles of rainforest!

Celebrating this biodiversity, this painting is a cacophony of color and pattern, unified by the circles repeated across the surface of the canvas.

When birds start migrating in the fall, I find myself having an intense desire to follow, to wander.

With that idea of wanderlust in mind I have painted this piece with a lot of movement, echoes in the painted vining branches.

In the midsummer, when the air is thick with humidity, the haziness makes the hum of cicadas reverberate.

I tried to mimic this heaviness in the air and the sound through my paint combinations, the greens providing a haziness to the piece, punctuated with golden dabs.

To create this “dreamscape” I began with a very broadly painted background. I then covered it with dabs of paint I let run down the canvas. The cohesiveness of the piece is created by the repetition of shapes and colors across the space.

The clouds above us are formed by water evaporating off the ocean, moving inland. Rain then falls and flows into the water systems, once again to become the ocean

I wanted to mimic this cycle in my painting with circular movements and repetition of circles and brushstrokes.

Life too is a cycle.. go with the flow!

Rain is Nature’s white noise machine. Occurring at a slightly lower frequency, the sound of rain allows our minds to wander or even enter meditation and can lead to creativity!

In this painting I have used multiple layers in various shades of blue and small circles to evoke the feeling of water. The patterned dabs of paint and circles scratched into the surface of the canvas are reminiscent of water drops. I have then painted a whimsical foreground of lilies in jeweled tones of pink to add warmth and depth.

For plants, the death of vegetation is an essential part of new growth. Dying provides nutrients essential to change and growth. For myself, I have come to discover that the end of things that no longer serve me (bitterness, resentment, people-pleasing, etc.) can also lead to growth!

The back ground of this painting is a crosshatch of multiple layers overlaid with small bare branches. In the foreground is a pair of vibrant leaves with whimsical details adding cohesiveness to the painting.

A plant that has almost become synonymous with Africa in my memory, acacias are a hardy tree which provides shade and shelter in harsh environments. Because of its evergreen nature, the acacia has become a symbol for renewal and regeneration

Sometimes spending a day outside is the perfect way to recharge. In fact, just the act of sitting or walking outdoors, especially if you’re barefooted surface electrons from the Earth transfer into the body.

I wanted to depict a sense of adventure and space, as well as the passage of time. The drips of paint in the background, painted over multiple layers, help to add dimension and interest. A middle ground for the piece in the broad circles, impressionistic suns and bare branches encourage the viewers’ eyes to travel around the canvas. Furthermore, the broad vertical dabs and lines, and the lotus pods in the foreground add to the wildness of this painting.

The desert is a wild place! Distance and light can play tricks on the eyes. Mirages can be seen especially in the heat.

This mirage-like painting was created by first painting a base coat, then overlaying that with watered down paint which was allowed to run across the surface of the canvas after turning it horizontally. I also intermittently painted large bold circles and smaller more evenly spaced ones to add depth. The bare branches also add to the overall wild feeling of this painting.

A celebration painting for a dear friend who completed a 200 hour yoga training course. Using mental, physical and spiritual practices, yoga is aimed at stilling the mind and at self-consiousness.

Sitting in the yoga pose called sukhasana, the painting shows a figure seated, resting in balance with her external environment, enlightenment.

There is a giant Tulip Poplar behind my house that is over a hundred feet tall! It amazes me that the pattern for that giant tree is written in the tiny seeds that spiral down.

The image of the “tree cell” in this painting was created by first allowing the paint to run horizontally, then vertically before adding the ridged details that mimic the edge of the leaf. The paint drips can also be found in the background.

This painting is inspired by a song by Teyana Taylor called ” A Rose in Harlem”, which is about beauty surviving in a harsh environment and striving through adversity.

A structured background to represent the city was created by allowing the paint to run horizontally, then vertically, making a grid. It was then overlaid with patterned squares. The vining rose is painted in the foreground in a more organic way, with blossoms on the ends of the painted branches.

After it rains on dry soil the earthy smell in the air is called “petrichor”. When rain lands on the porous ground small air bubbles form that float up and release the scent. It is one of my most favorite smells on earth!

To depict this phenomenon, I first painted the background in lighter tones overlaid with dripping blue paint. Further layers of small dabs of paint and circles were then added along with the painted trees and foliage.