Making art enables me to see the world’s beauty with more delight and to witness its tragedies with more empathy and compassion.

Two disparate pieces of my life fuel my art practice: 35 years as a journalist, and my experience of living in Japan, particularly studying calligraphy.

My minimalist ink paintings reflect a passion for the brush, rooted in Asian calligraphy. I relish juxtaposing beauty – the understated elegance of the brush stroke or the glory of nature — with upheavals in politics or the turmoil in our own lives.

My monotypes begin on an etching press, and then I paint or draw images that seem to emerge in the artwork’s surface. The monotype process enables me to incorporate many different elements. Storytelling and authenticity remain important to me, but my tools now include color, texture, translucent layering, as well as newspaper images and text.

I may start with an idea, as in the series, Beneath the Sunrise,  which explores the dichotomy between nature’s extraordinary beauty and the man-made catastrophes haunting our world today.  The series, Roemania, reflects how decisions by the Supreme Court and some states have shoved women back into the dark ages.

Sometimes, intuition alone drives my work. No analysis, no planning, no thinking ahead.  I gather my tools — brushes, rollers, ink stick, whatever — and let my spirit guide the marks.