Newlandia Series I-III
The natural world is a filter through which I examine my life and the world around me. The source is my growing up on the Gulf Coast – literally with the beach and gulf in front and wild woods and lowland behind. I found freedom and solace in nature and carry that experience until this day.
Newlandia III
In Newlandia III, I imagine the land and sea from above, surveying the lines on the surface as if following a life’s path. I see the paintings as aerial views or maps, a guide through the personal and metaphorical landscapes of our changing world and ecosystems.
Art can restore the self; together, we can help nourish and preserve the earth. Microcosm and macrocosm, abstraction, landscape, map, and place - my works are all these at once. I hope the viewer will traverse these works and find connections and paths that are personally important.
Newlandia III, Encaustic, India ink on Wood
Rip Up the Map, 46 x 30 in, Encaustic, India ink on Wood
Redline, 48 x 36 x 2 in, Encaustic, India ink on Wood
Writing on the Wall, 46 x 30 in, Encaustic, India ink on Wood
GPS Newlandia, 24 x 36 in, Encaustic, India ink on Wood
Mapping Newlandia
Newlandia II
This iteration of Newlandia is darker in tone and content. These are heavily worked, mostly aerial views with deep gouges and scrapes in the surface. When creating them, the physicality of my movements somehow released hidden memories, and connections emerged between remnants of environmental devastation and scars on my own body. I began understanding the works as a self-reflective journey where creation and destruction coexist.
Elemental, 40 x 48 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Elemental, detail
Night Flight, 40 x 48 in, Encaustic on wood
And Then... (The Levees Broke), 48 x 36 in, Encaustic on Wood
Freefall, 38 x 22 in, Encaustic on Wood
Search, 38 x 22 in, Encaustic on Wood
Search, detail
Small Wonder I, 14.5 x 13 in, Encaustic on wood
Small Wonder II, 14.5 x 13 in, Encaustic on wood
Small Wonder III, 14.5 x 13 in, Encaustic on wood
Small Wonder IV, 14.5 x 13 in, Encaustic on wood
Small Wonder V, 14.5 x 13 in, Encaustic on wood
Newlandia I
Trust guides these pieces and allows the medium to present itself metaphorically and abstractly, with only vaguely pre-determined parameters. Hundreds of layers of encaustic wax are built up with repeated strokes and then worn down with heat or friction tools. This process mimics geology, and the results resemble familiar landforms. These works, rich with personal meaning, explore my inner landscape and our evolving natural environment. I pursued the Newlandia Series for several years, looking for what the changing world might be. I liken my process to Google mapping the future.
Hectare, 28 x 28 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Terrain, 28 x 28 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Reef, 28 x 28 in, Encaustic on Wood
Fen, 24 x 24 in, Encaustic on Wood
Urchin, 28 x 28 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Parcel, 16 x 16 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Aquaria, 16 x 16 in, Encaustic on Wood
Atoll, 24 x 24 in, Encaustic on Wood
Drift, 16 x 16 in, Encaustic on Wood
Fathom, 28 x 28 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Coral 2013, 24 x 24 in, Encaustic on Wood. Private collection, US.
Frondosa, 12 x 9 in, Encaustic on Wood
Oceana, encaustic on wood. Private collection, US.
Dawn, encaustic on wood, 9" x 12". Private collection, US.