Created throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, these poems give outward expression to an inner experience of heightened uncertainty, longing for connection, reflection on the past, and hope for a future worth inhabiting. In this minimal, fragmented form — perfect for tired attention spans — the seeds of reimagining self and society are planted. May they grow in beauty and resilience.
I’ve written poetry in various forms for as long as I can remember. In 2020, I was feeling creatively bottlenecked and tried a new technique—blackout poetry—in attempt to find flow through a new outlet. It worked. I’ve made approximately 400 poems in less than 2 years. Whether it’s through prints, a gallery show, my book, or encouraging you to give it a try, I love sharing these experiments in erasure — in remixing, in looking again to see something anew.
The physical, instinctual nature of painting is essential for me. I covet time away from the screens that seem to mediate more and more of our lives. Smelling the paint, feeling the texture, mixing the colors, seeing the sun pour into my garage studio, and listening to music or podcasts while I work create an immersive experience through which I can synthesize these inputs into some abstract expression. What emerges often invokes calm and an invitation to inquiry for viewers.
In collage—like in blackout poems—I make something new from things that already exist, which is often helpful in overcoming the hesitancy one can feel at the endless possibility of a blank page. Rather than a process of subtraction, though, collage is a process of addition. My materials for collage include magazines, newspapers, old books, photographs, glue, tape, scrapbook paper, and more.
Through digital painting, book covers, and editorial illustration, I enjoy using my training in graphic communication to create compelling visuals that often help illustrate some worthy idea. My sensibilities with color, texture, layered meaning, and mixed media materials are seen here as they are in other mediums. You can view a gallery of this work here as I update my portfolio and print shop.
The creative process comes full circle for me in the sharing. It is often the desire to give a gift—to offer something of value to you—that motivates me to keep making things. You can explore the work that is currently available in my online shop.
Thanks for being here,
SD
