“The thematic origins of an exhibition are found in the most strange and wonderful ways. Sometimes they are ideas that have circulated in my work for my entire career, primed to be drawn out and examined more closely; other times, they are found in art history, cultural commentary, or in my own life and relationships. Then there are exhibitions like this one, where just at the right moment, while I’m in that liminal zone between shows, beginning a new body of work and ruminating on where it will go, something will appear, catch the imagination, and set the course. In this case, the title of a book on a friend’s coffee table: the Atlas of Perfumed Botany.”

— Excerpt from the Artist Statement

“In one technique, called enfleurage, petals are carefully layered in an odourless fat to extract scent over days, and then removed and replaced with fresh flowers until a concentrated scent is captured. Reading about the difficulty of isolating aromas from natural materials, I started to draw parallels between the techniques and processes of perfumery and the work I was producing in the studio. This current body of work is about complexity and density. The sheer amount of raw material needed to obtain a small vial of essence is reflected in the crush of petals on canvas. ”

— Excerpt from the Artist Statement

“The alchemy of rounding out a scent with top, heart and base notes is how I view the array of materials and techniques layered into a piece. There is a richness to deep lingering stains, a vitality in large gestural brushstrokes, and a captivating quality to the bright flicks of color that leap towards the viewer.

The link between florals and fragrance might seem like low-hanging fruit, but what developed throughout this work was not solely about the beauty of flowers and their scents, but the idea that a well-rounded fragrance has selectively inharmonious notes to offset and enhance the sweet. ”

— Excerpt from the Artist Statement

*Hovering Between the Earth and Sky #1-4*

“The most beautiful things are benefitted by a subtle grittiness, a counterpoint that lends complexity and endurance to a piece. In this sense, to paint a balanced composition is much like developing a captivating scent; there are elements that catch the eye, but they are complemented by unassertive washes of color, areas of texture and roughness, mistakes intentionally left in– and ultimately it is the relationship of these elements that make a piece of art enduringly interesting.”