WHERE DO YOU FIND THE MATERIALS FOR THE COLLAGES AND CONSTRUCTIONS?
IS WORKING ON THEM THE SAME AS WORKING ON THE OIL PAINTINGS?

I think of the collages and constructions as a game, and the game starts with the hunt. I search for paper in flea markets, yard sales, and antique stores. I'm looking for damaged eighteenth- and nineteenth-century printed matter with its high rag content, raised ink, and mottled character. It feels good to the touch and can stand a lot of abuse. Sometimes I'll buy paper just for the mold, which I stabilize with acrylic matte gel. Cutting and pasting and painting over and under with gouache or acrylic is just plain fun, and I do it usually in the spring or summer when I want a change of position mentally and physically from the oils. I push my easel into a corner, close up all the oil paints, and temporarily enlarge the horizontal workspace by nailing sheets of plywood onto the studio table.

There is a huge old rodeo trunk that is stuffed full of paper that I've collected over the years; I open it up, and because I have the memory of a duck it's always like Christmas for me. I spread paper everywhere to look at and try to memorize. Then I start cutting things out and sorting the pieces into boxes and piles by categories: lizards, birds, text, body parts, etc. It's like a giant jigsaw puzzle, and I'm not allowed to use a computeror copier to change the elements. If I can't find what I need in my piles of paper, then I have to use paint to add or subtract. To make the transition from engraving to paint, I use a very fine brush with sepia or an umber/black mix. Another rule is that I'm not allowed to pull apart books that are in good condition, so children, fire, and flood are my friends.

Working on the mixed-media constructions and boxes is pretty much the same kind of game, only in three dimensions. I find the parts at the same flea markets and antique stores where I search for paper. To add to that, friends often bring me odd things back from trips, and I also occasionally buy parts new from plumbing supply houses and hardware stores. Once in a while I like to use stone, and I very much enjoy the feel and sound of working with the chisels and hammer. We are lucky here in Austin because clear white limestone is everywhere.