"My dreams encompass my prayers... may my work bless many with an increased awareness." ...

... and my art is that which leads me through life... I remain open to it all... allowing myself to be the vessel through which this creative flow needs to pass... this is the only activity that makes sense to me... Through my art, I wish to sensitize the masses... to the quintessence of form found in Nature, and to awaken the inherent sensitivity in all.

To actually be with a flower, to go inside of her... to be with a bone and experience it's perfection in design as well as it's perfect structural strength... on the lava... and in the waves... to truly see, hear, and feel... to experience their individual teachings, and in turn, to pay tribute to them all... by being open to that which is being given to me, and, in turn, manifest sculpture...

My dreams encompass my prayers... May my work bless many with an increased awareness.

At this point in my life, the Big Island of Hawaii serves me in a powerful way. In her rich fecundity, my reservoirs are continuously filled with passion, ideas and images. New life and form are produced every moment here with the ever flowing lava... I see, hear, smell... feel... and thrive on the myriad of forms found in the very powerful Nature here. In the ocean as well as in the spectacular rain forests... in the dramatically contrasting arid deserts, on the moon-like lava scapes.....in the petals of irises and orchids... the endless variety of flowering gingers, and lilies... often being accompanied by birds' intermittent symphonies... and our most recent blessing, the nocturnal tree frogs that have this oh so special orchestra of peeping that pierces the nights...

All of this leads me to making maquettes in my hidden studio... here on my farm in the rain forest. After being here for several months, I then follow my call to the deserts of India, where antiquity and ancient civilizatons have made their indelible marks... where new forms, lessons, and teachings await me always. I work in Rajasthan where I live in a factory with 75 men and I am the only woman carver there as well as the only westerner. These men are both Muslim and Hindu and the majority are of the Rabari tribe, this particular group being from the Mt. Abu area of Rajasthan. They are very skilled, gentle and beautiful people and have lived very simply for centuries. They do not speak any English but we harmonize with one another beautifully just through our eyes, our body language and our mutual respect for one another. An incredibly wonderful learning, growing, and creative process takes place between us. The actual sharing of life with the Rabaris, who have been goat and camel herders for centuries, is such a fulfilling experience. I have always felt at home with indigenous peoples and I have lived in many countries, among them: Kenya, where I went when I was seventeen. I had been hired by The American Friend's Service to help construct a school in Uganda, but once arriving, opted to explore the country and be a free spirit; Indonesia, where I was a batik artist,and Jamaica where I lived with the Rastafari in a tree house on the Caribbean for seven years. I explored Mexico on five different occassions and Thailand several times as well as the Head of the Amazon in Peru, and New Zealand where I lived with the Maori, making a film. I was a documentary and an independent filmmaker for ten years while living in NewYork City and Atlanta.

... The Rabari's oneness with the Earth, their deep connection to the Spirit World and their deep reverence for the family unit all make for a people and culture for whom I hold the highest regard. We cook outside over open fire, bathe in nearby available waters and play music on the rooftops at night.... sounds that are primal, tribal, and hauntingly beautiful... music that pierces the soul.

I am quite aware that they have never experienced a woman like myself. In their culture, they marry at a very young age. The wives' duties are understood as are the husbands'. Their is no confusion of roles in a primitive, indigenous society. These people are rooted, secure, loved and have large extended familes... consequently they rarely experience the agony and pain that so often riddle those of us in the Western world... broken homes, loneliness, lives filled with drugs and alcohol, addicted relationships and promiscuity.

I truely feel blessed to have this opportunity to be an integral part of this present cultural fusion... for in my heart of hearts, I do believe that I am a rare and exotic wildflower...

For the last year I have been carving granite in China, marble in India, and casting bronze in Nepal.. Yes, naturally the whole experience has been fascinating, thrilling, devastating, depressing, exhilirating, frustrating, and very inspiring!..
may the work speak......