Be still my prairie girl heart

I am swept away by the beauty of Canada. The mountains call adventure, lake country is a sanctuary and the prairie… the prairie feels like home.

I grew up in a military family, moving from Labrador to Manitoba and finally Saskatchewan. I became a professional dancer after graduation which took me from Toronto to Vancouver. I have been a resident of Edmonton, Alberta since 2003, raising a family and running my own business. In 2021 I retired from my Massage Therapy practice and began creating felt art full time.

As an artist, I draw inspiration from the spectacular landscape that surrounds me – the prairies, parkland, lakes and mountain ranges of Western Canada. Wool is my medium and I use a combination of needle and wet felting to craft artwork that is saturated with vivid colour and energy. My dimensional felt paintings are created using my own methods of layering, blending and texturizing fibre. My approach is a contrast between spontaneity and precision, reflecting the ever-changing, ephemeral sky and the more defined terrain I seek to capture. I often use locally sourced vintage frames which highlight the nostalgia and romance of the wool medium while offering pleasing contrast with the modernity of my work. Alternately, I collaborate with my wood-worker husband to custom frame my pieces.

Felt is a perfect medium for Canadian landscape. It is soft and strong in equal measure. The fibers both absorb and reflect light, creating a feeling of comfort alongside jewel-bright intensity. It is possible to create a vast range of texture, play of light and palpable physical depth within a single landscape. Between this fascinating medium and the boundless inspiration of Canadian places, both wild and tamed, I will never run short on inspiration.