2021
Moving on — Collage and ink on paper — Handmade redwood cone ink from the redwood tree in my yard, found and painted paper, fluorescent orange spike tape.
Hollow Water — Indigo + laser print + found paper — Indigo grown in Tennessee.2020
Fragment Bundle — Red earth & yellow ochre + laser print — Red earth: foraged in Maui; yellow ochre: foraged in California.
Flowers for Andrea — Found paper, yelllow ochre, Japanese rice paper — Yellow ochre: foraged in Oregon, found paper from various sources.
Edge of Arago 1 (For Joann) — Found paper, yelllow ochre, indigo, red ochre — Yellow ochre foraged in Oregon; indigo grown in Tenessee, red ochre foraged in California; found paper from Oregon camping trip.
Edge of Arago 3 (Unfinished Business) — Found paper, laser print, and yelllow ochre — Yellow ochre foraged in Oregon; found paper from travel magazines.
Edge of Arago 2 (For Melissa) — Found paper, laser print, and yelllow ochre — Yellow ochre foraged in Oregon; found paper from travel magazines.
Ink test — Collage with painted paper — Tennessee indigo and red ochre from Hawaii.
Mound — Handmade ink on paper — Foraged charcoal, red and yellow ochre, Tennesse indigo, foraged green mineral pigment.
Invented landscape — Natural pigment watercolor and charcoal on paper — Venetian red, blue ridge yellow ochre, maya blue.
Memory of the Sky Over Richmond Bay — Natural pigment watercolor and charcoal on paper.
Yard Study 1 — Handmade redwood cone ink and charcoal on paper — Redwood cone ink made from the redwood tree in my yard.
Yard Study 2 — Handmade redwood cone ink, iron gall ink, and lemon on paper — Redwood cone ink made from the redwood tree in my yard; iron gall ink from Mt. Diablo oak galls and given to me by artist Jon Scheleuning; lemon from my dad’s lemon tree
Red Moon — Handmade redwood cone ink and iron on paper — Redwood cone ink made from the redwood tree in my yard; adding iron to the redwood cone ink turns it black.
Fragments from an Unknowable Landscape — Handmade and foraged mineral pigments on photographs; collaboration with photographer Justin James King — Handmade, foraged mineral pigments including red ochre from Oakland, CA, and green earth from Oregon. These prints are available for purchase here.
2019
Sempervirens — Handmade redwood cone ink on paper.— Redwood cone ink made from the redwood tree in my yard.
Ink Test — Handmade charcoal, cabbage, and avocado ink on paper.
Counting — Handmade iron and indigo ink on paper.
Invaders — Foraged invasive oxalis flower ink on paper.
Newcomb Hollow — Tennessee indigo ink and foraged green mineral paint on paper.
2018
100 Days of mark-making
I set out to make a painting every day for 100 days. Using a different brush each day, I also crafted my own botanical inks—a highly variable process with many unknowns.
I set up specific parameters to create discipline for the 100 days: I used roughly the same size and type of paper every day, worked in a condensed, consistent time frame.
The resulting work encapsulates a moment in time, an exploration of materials, and an embrace of imperfection. In a world filled with pressure to always make the perfect choice, it becomes freeing to embrace the unknown. I consider the work as somewhere between making things happen, and letting things happen. I tried consciously to not let mistakes feel like mistakes, but instead portals to discovery.
Handmade botanical inks include:
Loquat leaves (from a Loquat tree in my yard)
Iron gall (oak galls + iron)
Indigo (from various sources)
Avocado pit (from compost)
Oxalis (sourgrass – an invsive weed in the Bay Area)
A selection of the pieces were shown in a solo show at Morningtide in Albany, CA.
Installation photos by Lisa Jackson
Installation photos by Lisa Jackson