I have created paintings and collage in public and private contexts for 25+ years, but my public work has increasingly moved in the direction of mosaic and handmade tile installations. A 1995-6 residency with what's now called Recology, our local SF waste transfer and recycling company, first stimulated me to create large-scale sculpture using recycled materials. I have since worked individually and in collaboration with other artists, and with community groups in designing and fabricating artwork for public and private architectural settings, as well as smaller and more personal painting, sculpture and ceramics.

My pieces are mostly located here in the Bay Area, but having them outdoors and available to the public for free (in parks, schools, public housing, etc) has created connections for me with people around my city and around the world. The potential for cultural exchange opened up by the digital age--despite some of the very negative effects I think it has had on people's lives--inspires me and helps to alleviate the isolation of the artist alone in the studio. Creative individuals around the world are all grappling with the same sorts of issues, and this cumulative energy can be a galvanizing and hopeful force.

The Art in Embassies program, which I have only just discovered, strikes me as one way that art can have some real and lasting positive effect in the world, and I would be honored and moved at the opportunity to participate.