I grew up in a small town called Nanoose Bay on Vancouver Island. My fondest childhood memories are spending time in my imaginary house situated in a dogwood tree and the magic boulder a little further down the hill. Cold winter days were spent inside listening to my record player and learning music on my small blue keyboard that had little lights to teach me how to play the songs. My imagination was vivid and swirled around my every moment. I was the helper in the family. When my dad was fixing cars I was the one pushing the brakes and being the extra person required to get the job done. At the ripe age of 12 I even took an auto body course with him. I also stood over my mom’s shoulder as she sewed and created amazing things and was always totally inspired by her.
As a young adult entering into independent life, I lived a bohemian lifestyle. I house sat, WWOOFED and eventually bought my first home and lived in an old classic GMC converted school bus. Inside this old bus I made sure to carve out space for sewing, drawing and painting. It wasn’t until my late twenties that I moved to the city in pursuit of a creative career.
My education began at Helen Lefeaux School of fashion design where I refined my skills to draw, paint, create patterns, design and sew. I gave this one year program my everything and in the end was awarded a golden bobbin for being the most outstanding student overall. The following two years I spent at the school as a teacher’s assistant where I learned more than I could ever imagine. After those two years I began my education at Capilano University where I took the Textile Arts Program and eventually continued to finish my degree in Fine Arts at Emily Carr University.
While at school I landed a job with the City of Vancouver at their Landfill. I’ve always felt a deep sentiment and connection to the natural world so working at a landfill seemed the most unlikely place I would end up. To my surprise, I found meaning in my work by providing information to the public about alternative waste recovery options whenever possible. My Job also affected my art practice as it became difficult for me to justify using entirely new materials to create art. Overwhelmed by the vast amount of ‘materials’ that flowed through my work site it has taken me a while to find a way to use reclaimed items that truly express what I am thinking. Currently I am using salvaged wood to create sculptures or paintings on.
While working at the landfill over the past 9 years, I have learned to operate all the equipment. I have developed a particular fondness to operating the bulldozer. It is a skill that takes many years to be really good at and I view it as a potential tool for creating art. When I am in the machine, I feel it requires a concentration much like of sewing does however it is a more embodied experience. For me, when I am lucky enough to operate such a powerful machine I consider myself sculpting with whatever material it may be that I am pushing at the time. The most experienced operators speak about their job much in the same way that an artist speaks about their process.