Welcome! Thank you for stopping by!
A bit of background for those of you interested...
Perhaps it all started because I had lots of time on my hands. Though I loved running and riding my bike, I spent most of my time indoors. I lived in a city in a tenth floor apartment and that came with some obvious limitations.
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I was fidgety, curious and anxious. I saw opportunity for play in everyday objects. Making my own toys with cardboard boxes, scissors, markers and glue was my idea of fun. I never got tired of it.
​Fast forward a good four decades. It's been a bumpy ride and I find myself a bit worse for wear. I have persistent chronic pain. I occasionally have a brief respite and then you'll find me in my studio. I have not lost any of my inquisitiveness, and I still enjoy making things whenever I can.
​Because chronic pain doesn't like to travel solo, I suffer bouts of depression and anxiety. Misery loves company, they say... Thankfully, making art comforts me and helps my mood. I'd be lost without it.
I am well aware of the stigma surrounding mental illness. I realize it is still pervasive. Many times, I've been told that the subject makes people uncomfortable. Well, I am pretty bad at chit chat and I've been through with "polite conversation" for years now. I speak up because it makes me sad to think that the only option for people like me is to suffer in silence. It's just not right.
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Instead, I try to be pretty transparent both with people who know me and with my work. That's the reason you will see glimpses of me in every image I make. Yes, it feels vulnerable and scary sometimes, but it is the only way to be.
​I work from personal experience. With each collage I push back on my own anxiety, my fears and my feelings of inadequacy. Every image is a stepping stone towards healing. Collaging is an anchoring practice that works for my silly brain.
I also hope that people with similar issues will find a little bit of solace in my images. I know that a kind word at the right time can mean the world to someone who is suffering. If an image is worth a thousand words, maybe my collage work can connect with another person who is also suffering. It's a tall order, but I'm up for the challenge. Healing is a difficult journey. Why not travel together?
​Little else is relevant.
​A great deal of my inspiration continues to flow from my formative years in Spain. MAD is, in fact, short for Madrid, and I confess I still miss my city very much. So, my collages are like the confluence of two rivers: memory and imagination. They merge into each other to create something new.
Thank you for your support. Stay a while. I hope you feel intrigued and perhaps even comforted by my images.
Hasta luego!