Octopus Work

The studio has been loud lately, not in sound, but in pull.

I’m working across multiple series at once, moving from one piece to another, then back again. Rope on one table. Foraged material drying in the corner. A vessel half-bound. A line of thought that won’t sit still. It feels a little ADHD in the studio, attention splitting, doubling back, chasing sparks before they cool.

It’s a gift and a curse.

Focus, for me, doesn’t look like a straight line. It looks like orbit. One piece unlocks another. Finishing something doesn’t close it, it opens a door. I’ll tie off one work and immediately see where it wants to go next. So I follow it, even if it means holding five things at once.

Right now, I’m in that stretch, finishing, resolving, pushing pieces to their edge while new ideas keep interrupting. I don’t fight it. I work like an octopus, reaching, holding, testing, building across everything all at once.

All of it is moving toward my solo show at Cane Roots Gallery in Christiansted, opening later this year. The work is rooted here, in St. Croix. New rhythms. New materials. New material histories. What the land offers. What the sea leaves behind. What the island reveals over time.

There are not enough hours in the day to bring every idea into the light. I’ve had to accept that. Some things will wait. Some will evolve. Some will never be made and that’s part of the practice too.

But what is here, what is becoming, is enough.

Each piece carries the imprint of this moment of working in motion, of holding many threads, of trusting that even in the scatter, there is a pattern forming.

I just have to keep my hands in it.

Work In Progress: Becoming Pelagic

This evolving sculptural work emerges from recovered marine line, sea-tumbled and woven with my Aunt Terry’s yellow baby yarn, entangling care, loss, and inheritance. Rooted in the Atlantic as a water grave, it imagines what might form if those taken by the ocean did not vanish, but transformed, absorbed into marine systems, reshaped by pressure, time, and survival.

Built from hurricane-recovered debris, hair, shells, and industrial fragments, the work treats mutation as a strategy rather than a wound. It is not a fixed memorial, but a living anatomy in progress, an offering that shifts as memory settles, asking the ocean to be read not only as a site of rupture, but as an active, generative archive.

Work in Progress: Bottle Cap Braided Net

This piece begins with what the sea gives back. Recovered fishing net, sun-bleached, knotted, and scarred by use, becomes the armature for braided strands threaded with salvaged bottle caps. Each braid is a quiet act of repair, gathering what was discarded, listening to its history, and coaxing it into new form.

Together, net and cap hold tension: soft against hard, fluid against fixed, ocean memory against human habit. Still in motion, the work asks to be handled slowly. Knots are negotiated, braids lengthened, stories layered. What is emerging is a record of tides, touch, and the ongoing work of reimagining what we leave behind.

WIP: Celestial Nexus

This artwork, crafted from three-ply cotton glitter rope, intricately knotted and wrapped with eyelash yarn, embroidery floss, and crystal beads, forms the foundational layer of a spiritual altar. Designed to harmonize with feathers, shells, and a bowl of water, it amplifies elemental energies to create a sacred space for reflection, connection, and renewal.

Its circular form embodies the cyclical nature of life and the continuous flow of energy, symbolizing the infinite interplay between air and water. The shimmering materials catch and reflect light, evoking sunlight filtering through shifting clouds or the unseen yet ever-present currents of wind moving through the atmosphere. This piece invites a meditative engagement, weaving together elements of nature and spirit into a unified, radiant whole.

Transforming Trash into Treasure: Beach Clean-Up in St. Croix

Every week, I hit the shores of St. Croix armed not just with bags for trash, but with a vision. Ghost nets, marline line, and rope—once marine debris—are prized materials for my artwork. These discarded remnants not only mar our beautiful beaches but also tell a story of environmental neglect.

Through meticulous collection during beach clean-ups, I breathe new life into these discarded items. By repurposing them in my artwork, I not only create striking pieces but also raise awareness about ocean conservation and the impact of human activity on marine ecosystems.

I am turning the tide on pollution—one ghost net at a time.

Work in Progress

As an artist deeply passionate about sustainability and the beauty of the unexpected, I’ve always been drawn to the idea of giving new purpose to discarded objects. There’s something incredibly satisfying about taking something that might otherwise end up in a landfill and transforming it into a work of art that sparks wonder and curiosity.

I am still sourcing the materials to embellish the braids so I expect to be working and completing this piece, while I am in residency at Touchstone Center for Crafts this Spring and Fall.

more to come…