fruitful remembrance in curaçao | surface design collection
This collection revisits my childhood memories of the Caribbean and summers spent on the tiny island of Curaçao, where my father was born. My memories are marked by an abundance of tropical fruit; the enticing fruit stands were never-ending at the floating markets we visited each weekend. Using organic and abstracted shapes and forms inspired by Gustav Klimt's textile samples, I wanted to portray the overflowing barrels of fruit and color floating on the hundreds of boats stationed in the harbor.
In my family, mangoes were always sliced in this particular grid shape, which we referred to as a "peacock".
I remember how rewarding it was to finally be able to retrieve a young, green, coconut after making you way up the long trunk of a palm tree.
Papayas are my mother's favorite fruit. My sisters and I would collect the papaya tree blossoms that littered the ground.
salmon run | print collection
I chose to highlight the importance of salmon as a key species. In the Pacific Northwest, the health of nature's fragile ecosystems greatly depends on local salmon populations. One population of orca whales, in particular, rely heavily on Chinook salmon as their main food source. For the Southern Resident Killer Whale population, the availability of salmon is key to their survival. This pattern collection focuses on themes of interconnectedness within nature and the fragility of its systems.
I designed this series of pattern and applications to be displayed in interior spaces that directly frame the scenes of nature that lie just outside. Through these specific applications, I aim to highlight the natural landscape and urge viewers to looks towards the environment and pay attention to the health of our ecosystems.
At the base of Snake River, a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest, manmade dams block the passage of salmon between rivers and oceans, restricting access to salmon for the orca whales. For this reason, I chose the interior of a Snake River cruise ship as a specific application for my patterns.
After designing a three-dimensional design with cut paper inspired by coral reef textures, I hand-painted the same design two-dimensionally with gouache in two color ways.
coral reef patterns | dimensional design
gouache on bristol, 30" x 30" in repeat
endless bouquets | floral design
watercolor and ink on bristol, 20" x 24"
a peek at a new soup collection.... currently in development!
landscape stripes | gouache color practice
