American Toile

paintings.     photography      mixed media


I am an artist working in paint, photography, and mixed media. My work contemplates religious, historic, and mythological women, personal histories (including my own), the psychological undercurrents of contemporary society, and the little things that sustain us (like fiddler crabs, radishes, eggs, and fish).


I especially love working on non-traditional surfaces, painting on burlap, stone, found objects, and cigar boxes. Recent projects use discarded slate from a former state-run (1885-1996) condemned psychiatric hospital. Now a hotspot for urbex explorers, it provides a wealth of unusual poignant pieces of history on which to paint. The added symbolism using a piece of broken shelter from an insane asylum seems appropriate for our times.


Since 2016 I have organized and participated in several exhibits with social justice themes, with an upcoming show at the Arc Gallery in Chicago, protesting the attack on women’s rights in America.


Additionally, because surviving as a female artist is nearly impossible in a world that barely recognizes the work of women, I have a successful parallel administrative career, now on a freelance basis. My background includes office administration, database management and event planning. I have experience in corporate travel, hospitality, sales promotion, marketing, purchasing, law, banking and non-profit.


I have a creative, practical, common-sense approach to all aspects of these ventures and often find artist inspiration in my encounters with corporate America which has made an appearance in paint on and off for years.