Madison, WI ARTIST STATEMENTMy involvement in studio furniture stems from my interest in the fine craft movement. Similar to fine art, a craft object tells us a story about our culture and its history within that culture. Fine crafts differ because rather than remaining precious commodities, they were objects with a function, becoming embedded in peoples personal histories. The past few years my interest in anthropology and archeology has led to my research in historical artwork of the Mayan culture, African Textiles and sculpture along with Chinese sculpture and enamel work. This exploration has led me to create a body of work using traditional woodworking techniques such as carving and burning; the burnt surface of the carved works creates an age and weightiness to the pieces. Contrasting this with the beautiful and refined figured woods and innovative techniques, gives these pieces a feel of being both ancient and contemporary.