I grew up in rural Connecticut and moved west permanently after working at a school on the Navajo Reservation midway through college. I fell in love with the western landscape, and eventually completed my BFA in 1973 at the University of Colorado. After many years of making jewelry in Boulder, Colorado, I settled, unexpectedly in Nebraska. Now I work with one full time and two part time assistants in my studio at home in Lincoln.

My jewelry combines bold, simple, sculptural shapes to create a dynamic of tension and balance. I use textures and surface patterns rather than detail for tactile and visual interest. My design vocabulary derives from a wide range of sources which reflect my personal interests: the natural forms of rocks and seashells that I have collected since childhood, the lines and contours of landscapes where I have lived and traveled, the rich surfaces and intriguing shapes I find in weathered areas of the city. I am also interested in tribal and ancient jewelry that illustrates human curiosity about and need for arranging found objects in new, personal patterns.

The intuitive characteristic of the design process fascinates me: what speaks so clearly in visual terms is difficult to verbalize. I constantly register distinct impressions from things I see, yet it may take a year or longer for an idea to find form and materialize as a jewelry design.

Working with the materials is the most exciting part of the process for me. My recent focus has been on one-of-a-kind pieces. While my production work employs a neutral palette of silver, gold and black, the newer pieces emphasize color. I have been exploring different ways of changing the appearance of the metal through roller printing, and hammering the metal against textured surfaces. The combination of gems and earthier stones with 22k gold and silver provides the context for interplay of color, shape and texture. Hollow forms of textured metal allow volume and dimension while remaining lightweight. Wearability is always an important consideration for me. I want my jewelry to be comfortable and graceful a well as strong and sculptural. I am intrigued by the ways in which people are attracted to particular pieces. The designs are abstract which leaves the wearer open to creating a personal, intuitive relationship to the piece. My jewelry refers to classical and primitive traditions while remaining distinctly contemporary.