What were you doing before you applied to the Conway School?
In the years before Conway, I was immersed in making site-specific ecological art with found materials (both manufactured and from nature) that illustrated social, ecological and aesthetic narratives relevant to specific places and people.
What brought you to Conway?
At the presentations and information sessions, I was struck by the supportive yet demanding atmosphere of the school. Instructors had found the right balance of having high expectations and a humane approach to their students. I also appreciated that many of the students I met were (and still are) independent thinkers inspired by the love of landscape and a commitment to thinking creatively about design challenges in the world around us.
What advice do you have for someone just starting out in the field?
Listen to your intuition, take the time to be clear about what you want and stay curious and passionate.
What are you doing right now, and what do you love about it?
In addition to my landscape and art practice, I teach STEM arts programs in the local schools. It’s a true gift to share my passions for art, ecology and landscape with children and to witness their imaginations take flight when they connect science and art.
What book changed your life?
Recently, I have been inspired by the curated essays in Now Comes Good Sailing. The authors reflect on the ways that Thoreau influenced their lives and the world around them. I especially love the way Lauren Groff in her piece, Wild Apples, implores the reader to practice deep observation of place.
What is your favorite tool? E.g., a type of gardening tool, digital tool, etc.
My favorite tool is the draftmatic pencil. So simple, so many ways to employ it and I never have to sharpen it.
How do you think ecological design and planning can help make positive change?
Ecological design and planning respect the complexities and the poetry of ecological systems. When done well, design can illustrate the connections we share with the many hidden processes always going on all around us in the world. In so doing, it has the possibility of lifting our souls and respecting our planet.
Which aspects of your Conway education do you use in your current work? Which aspects do you use to address urgent challenges related to climate change, environmental justice, etc.?
I use a design methodology I learned from my time at Conway every day.
Listening to the design challenge, assessing what is happening through informed observation, and responding with appropriate interventions carries me through my art and landscape practice.
Sharing the wonder and awe I experience in the landscape as part of my understanding of social and ecological processes I learned at Conway, is the way I can best meet challenges posed by climate change and a chaotic world.
The art I make and the classes I teach invite the participants to slow down, engage and deepen their connections to the world around them.
