About

My work encompasses themes of female oppression.  I began with the symbolic desecration of Mother Earth through pollution and other environmental concerns, but soon evolved more in the direction of the role of women in our society.  I desire to shed light on how women are often marginalized and forced to conform or tolerate abuse in silence. A loss of voice as their emotions or traumas are pushed down, ignored, rationalized or diminished.  I use the camera as a way to establish an intimacy between the subject and the created image to reveal the power that comes when these emotions are acknowledged.  I am interested in capturing not only beauty and sensuality, but also the depth of emotion beneath the skin; to express sometimes the pain of silence and other times the strength of finding voice through growth and healing. 

The goal is a strong dynamic between myself and the model, choosing individuals I feel a connection with.  I have them contort into different shapes to capture the female body in unique, expressive and intricate ways. Through clear direction, and their innate ability to understand and embody the emotions I seek to portray, the outcome is a sensitive, raw image.  The intention is to evoke the feeling of being trapped or claustrophobic, but also the strength of being able to break out of the box of silence through honesty and vulnerability. A photograph has the capacity to immediately capture this tender emotional resonance.  The abstraction of the body, or the subject, further allows for interpretation and for women to relate their own experience to it. Each person's trauma is unique, but many of the felt emotions are universal -- angst, sadness, anger, power, joy. Thus, my aim is to move people emotionally to create awareness for change. To shift the cultural norms around silence and shame.