Artist Statement
Tonantzin is the Zapotec Earth Goddess. She was supplanted by Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Spanish conquest. Her face like a sun or a flower surrounded by plants and a hummingbird connects her to nature. I was also inspired by the Zapotec love of children and textile design. My creative process is intuitive. A sense of adventure spurs my exploration into divergent themes—from identity and place to the mystical, earthiness to the divine. The allure of colorful birds, the vigor of animals, the radiant power of ascendant women and the generative forces of Earth inform my work.
Materials & Technique
An art residency at the Rogue River Ranch inspired this image. I lived in the ranch house absorbing the history, roaming the grounds sketching and painting. At Mule Creek the clear turquoise water, flora and fauna and canopy of trees overhead provided a magical, reverent space to swim, paint and contemplate. My creative process relies on the intuitive. A sense of adventure spurs my exploration into divergent themes—from identity and place to the mystical, earthiness to the divine. The allure of colorful birds, the vigor of animals and the generative forces of Earth inform my artwork.