After decades as a working artist, I’ve come to realize that creative careers are often shaped by moments that seem small at the time.
For me, one of those moments happened as an art student at UNC-Chapel Hill, when my professor, Carla House, told me, “You have a voice. You need to go with it.”
Those words lifted the restraints off me. I felt free to let the materials guide the work. One material “told” another where it should be in an ongoing action/reaction process. This conversation between materials is central to my work.
Community became just as important to my work as the creative process itself. Lucy Lippard spoke at UNC and was the catalyst for me and several other women to found the Center/Gallery in Carrboro. She encouraged women artists to come together to exhibit their work and share ideas rather than work as individuals in isolation. That idea shaped my work for years. We exhibited together, challenged one another, and formed friendships that lasted well beyond our time in Carrboro.
In 1985, I moved to Greensboro with my husband and daughter. Although it was only an hour away, the move was difficult. My house quickly became a gathering place for artists. I explored Greensboro venues, such as the GreenHill Center for North Carolina Art and the Weatherspoon Art Museum, among others, and found my place here.
Throughout my career, opportunities have come at just the right moments. Serving as southeastern vice president of the Women’s Caucus for Art broadened my perspective, while grants — including two from The Arts Council of Greater Greensboro — made exhibitions and travel possible.
My work explores the relationship between our life cycles and those of nature and the context of memory and the passage of time. It’s shaped by experiences ranging from feminism and environmental concerns to my family’s history fleeing the former Soviet Union. Although I protested and gave money, it was in the studio that I found a way to express my feelings.
Later this month, I’ll exhibit a retrospective of my work at Greensboro Project Space (Aug. 18–Sept. 5). It’s my life story. My hope has always been that viewers bring their own stories to the work and discover meaning of their own.
Looking back, I realize how pivotal those opportunities were — not only for my own career, but for the creative community around me.
Organizations like The Arts Council of Greater Greensboro help create those opportunities. By investing in artists, they strengthen careers, inspire new work, and help build the creative community that makes Greater Greensboro such a vibrant place to live.
