Dichotomy

I create sculptural baskets made of inner bark, wood splints or grasses with soothing, organic shapes and sturdy walls of weaving. I have always felt, since my first basket, that the reason that I love to make them is the magic that happens within me when the rhythm of the stroke is felt. It is like an Indian mantra; to repeat in your head what your hands must do, "Over one and under one." It is intriguing to imagine how to construct a form, solve the technical problems and achieve the basket that I have seen in my mind. During the 49 years that I've been weaving baskets, I have explored many different techniques and materials. My work has been influenced by the natural world around me, a reverence for Native American and traditional baskets and an intense desire to produce an ordered object that I know may or may not be functional.