I am an Ottawa-based painter who is strongly influenced by my journey of loss and grief, which ultimately taught me which parts of myself I want to keep and which to leave behind. I chose to keep the brilliance, the connections and the excitement, which I express in my artwork with rich, vivid colours and energetic brush work.  

Using acrylic paint on canvas, I paint with vibrant colours, playing with composition and mark-making. I usually start with a soft brush to blend colours together on the canvas and then bring palette knives into play to create unexpected moments and interesting textures. Layering transparent colour over colour and then removing parts of it to reveal what’s underneath is a process that excites me when I am suddenly rewarded with light peeking through, a hidden colour found, or the darkness exposed. I often add lines that connect shapes together. Pastel and acrylic markers allow me to make thin connecting lines that seem to be meandering or searching, sometimes crossing paths, sometimes interrupted, similar to our relationships in life. Some elements can only be seen up close.

I don’t usually plan in advance. I start with a colour that calls to me and then add and remove colours and marks until I know it’s finished. Sometimes I’ll start with a small value sketch as a jumping off point to work out the composition of lights and darks. Using layering, mark making and colour, my artwork explores the many effects that can be created to express an idea or emotion using these techniques.  

Not knowing the outcome or having an established goal for a painting is a challenging way to paint for me, and one that teaches me in art and in life to let go of control, embrace mistakes and to be fearless when painting over something, losing what’s there but creating something new in its place.

My work explores themes of connection and disconnection which leads to a fascination with roots and branches: the way they intertwine over, under and around each other. These themes are my way of expressing how we can still be very connected to those who are no longer physically present.