Artist Statement

I began my artistic explorations in response to my stepfather Robert June Posey, who was an auto mechanic. His passion for working on cars inspired my curiosity. That, combined with my experiments in rebuilding broken bicycles, playing with microscopes and building models and paint by number sets, led me to explore painting.

Working out of a tiny garage space and backyard area, I built canvas stretcher bars and created my own grounds for acrylic painting. My style was a mix of graphic art and illustration. Working with traditional paintbrushes would ultimately lead me to take silkscreen printing classes.

My art praxis is derived from years as an accomplished carpenter, illustrator and textile designer. Mixed media art is my passion. Influenced in my formative years as an artist living and working at the Vulcan Foundry Studios in Oakland, the time there literally forged my unique studio practice and my community involvement. I continue a community-based approach to working in the arts.

In 1990, I began taking classes at The San Francisco Art Institute. I found that printing processes allowed for richer compositions and vibrant layers of color. Painting with color sparked my investigations into developing a gestural style of mark-making. I took up the profession of carpentry—it is the perfect profession for me as it engages my creativity and combines it with sculpture. I found that painting and carpentry are mediums that allow my unique voice to flourish.

I am a seminal member of The Art of Living Black, the only juried African American showing and open studios hosted by the Richmond Art Center.