UnEarthed
In Unearthed, natural clay and snake sheds intertwine to reveal what time leaves behind. Sourced from New Mexico, the clay shifts from smooth to coarse, like landscapes shaped by wind and memory. Each pressed shed captures a trace of transformation, an echo of something once alive. These works invite quiet discovery. Allowing us to notice what’s often unseen yet deeply beautiful, unearthed from the passing of time.
Plants
Nature has always been my home. A place where I feel most alive and creative. Immersed in its sounds, scents, and shifting light, I’ve come to revere the quiet transformations that unfold over time. The rhythm of seasons, the slow work of decay, the persistence of growth — each reveals the earth’s intricate design. In a world that moves too quickly, these small wonders remind us to pause, to notice, to rediscover the beauty that surrounds us.
This collection is close to my heart. Over the past few years, my family has experienced profound loss—my father, sister, grandmother, and beloved dog. Their urns sat quietly on a shelf, gathering dust. They felt heavy, static, distant. They didn’t reflect the light, joy, or essence of the souls they held.
One day, while rearranging those urns, I had an idea—one that transformed grief into creation. I realized I could weave their ashes into the clay plaster I had been working with for years, blending memory, matter, and art into something alive and beautiful again.
The first piece I made was for my Weimaraner, Pearl. We shared more than a decade of adventures—camping, hiking, wandering through Portland’s misty trails. After she passed, her urn sat untouched for years, leaving me with guilt and sadness. When I finally began her piece, I mixed soil from her favorite trail into the clay, paired it with pigments that echoed her silver-gray coat, and added surrounding flora. The result glows softly, with bits of bone shimmering against porcelain clay, like fragments of a foggy morning walk brought back to life.
Each artwork holds tangible traces of memory. My stepfather’s piece contains the small metal screws once used to mend his broken arm that had been returned with his ashes, now embedded in the plaster like quiet relics of resilience and story.
Up close, these works shimmer. Bone gleams softly against colored earth; pressed plants, sand, and bark recall the landscapes of a life. Every detail is chosen with intention, to evoke memory, to honor essence, to hold love in form.
Music is an integral part of my process. I listen to the songs my subjects loved as I work. Their rhythms shape the flow of the plaster, the palette of colors, the gestures of my hand. Through this practice, I try to capture their spirit and the energy, movement, and connection that made them who they were.
This work is about preservation, remembrance, and transformation. It’s about finding beauty in the act of letting go.
Commissions are open.
Please contact me if you’d like to explore creating a memorial artwork for your loved one.
Memorial
Vintage
Sequin
Simple yet luminous, the sequin carries a long and shimmering history. Once used for protection, as a sign of wealth, and for spiritual adornment, each one holds the memory of touch and time. The sequins I work with date to the eighteenth century. Some are silver, some brass, some carved from shell. I bring them together in new arrangements, allowing these small, forgotten treasures to shine once more. When light finds them, they respond with quiet brilliance, casting delicate reflections that shift and dance. Look closely. Within each piece, a quiet story unfolds.
