works
hand-formed
Inspired by the places where I spent my childhood and continue to visit regularly, I use clay to create forms that recall family rituals and the textures, colors, and patterns that permeate my sense of home.
beaded
I was pleasantly surprised to recently find a stash of glass and wood beads that I bought during a visit to Damascus many years ago, strolling through the heart of Souk Alhamidiyeh. It was like finding a gold mine of shiny colors and textures in all sizes, which brought a flood of memories of the dizzying array of shops with locally made crafts in the old souk. I felt inspired to make necklaces with these beads.
framed
Visual aesthetics have always interested me. Keen observations of form and its meaning and composition pervade my life, from the academic and professional to the personal. As I document my travels to cities and places, I carry home elements of those experiences through my photography and crafts created by others, including an assortment of mementos, some functional, some appealing purely for their beauty and patterns.
baked
Childhood memories shape us, especially around taste and smell and their cultural settings. The nostalgia we feel and the associations we hold onto stay with us through adulthood. Flavors from the Levant have permeated my culinary explorations. Baking in particular has been a comforting pastime.