About

Born and raised in Chicago, I spent many hours taking classes at the Art Institute as a child and teenager. With my drawing pad and crayons, in hand, I took the L every Saturday down to the Loop and walked up Michigan Ave to the “Tute”. At that time, the student entrance passed by the smooth, white, marbled sculptures. I wanted to touch them and I snickered because they were naked! In addition to art, I took as many modern dance classes as I could find, like Afro/Cuban and jazz. I have always lived in urban cities as I love the energy and the cultural advantages: concerts, theater and jazz clubs, for example.

In San Francisco, I am a full time working artist where I maintain a studio in an old Sealy Mattress Factory. I paint and draw on canvas at the same time creating lyrical, rhythmic, organic, amorphous shapes and gestures and geometric line. Stretching my arms wide, I paint large sweeping and rhythmic strokes. My materials include: acrylic paint, house paint, collage, India ink, crayons and charcoal to name a few.

Often, I start a painting with gestural lines and no particular intention. The marks begin to talk to me and then the collaboration begins. After 50 years as a psychotherapist, my paintings often develop a narrative, but I do not know the whole story. This reflects my experience in the therapy process: listening to the stories to see what will develop.

Before I start my day at the studio, I take a daily walk in Golden Gate Park. The ducks and ravens know me and sometimes follow along. My art is influenced by the lush greens, the blues of Stow Lake and the light that changes with every moment. The tangled trees that are shaped by the ocean wind and the many muted shades of the of birds.

This year, I will be turning 80 and I am very aware of my mortality. I have been asking myself some questions: what is most important to me now as an artist? Is there a particular line of questioning that I want to pursue and haven’t? What does legacy mean to me?