I made these drawings primarily at home when my son was sleeping or distracted. With oil painting at the core of my art activity, and its attending mess and long term involvement, I sought the pristine simplicity of pen and paper. Hiding at my desk, away from piles of laundry and dishes, I could give myself a moment to feel my feelings. The term somatic means body, so by focusing on sensations in my body, many of these drawings attempt to show an intangible emotion. But they also reflect an abstract ideal, or striving for balance, serenity, and geometric harmony. That being said, these drawings are made with no planning or forethought, so there are mistakes and imperfections. In this way, they became meditations as I work with a total sense of allowing and non-aggression. These drawings reveal my longstanding interest in geometric form that has previously been a smaller thread in my practice, only being hinted at in my oil paintings. I never had intended to exhibit these drawings, makints them for myself, but as opposed to my past work which is more coded, these drawings explicitly present my interest in art as meditation or spiritual practice. Spilt Milk is a collective of artist mothers from around the world. Started by Lauren McLaughlen, it considers the unique challenges that women artists face when embarking on a parenting journey. In contrast to the conventional idea that artists must sacrifice family life for success, we honor and support parenting as part of our creative and professional lives, and fight to create opportunities and infrastructure for creative mothers.
