I am an artist and educator in Nashville TN, at a school where arts is at the forefront. And while I teach many artistic mediums, my main concentration over the last 6 years has been glass. It didn't start this way. My education and training is in the area of photography. The first 20 years of practice after my degree has been in the pursuit of advancing photography as an art form. And to be honest, I was very comfortable in that space. But that changed to a large degree in 2002 when my father called to tell me he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. That was a blow for sure and I began to question my decisions that led me away from learning glass as an art form from him. Especially as the disease progressed over the years.
My work explores the possibilities of glass in the warm environment - Fusing, Slumping and Casting. I create without function in mind, and I always try to push the process up to and right after the breaking point; and I enjoy that when that happens. I also hope to fuse quite a bit of my father in my work. How that will happen I am not sure, but he is ever present in my creative decisions.