Biography
Tammy was born in Uxbridge, Ontario in 1972. Her teenage years and most of her young adult life was spent living in Kenora, Ontario and Winnipeg Manitoba. In 2003, she moved to Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta and currently calls "The Fort" her hometown.
Nature has always been a driving force behind her art. She deeply connects to nature and finds inspiration in flowers, rocks, trees, earth and water, amongst many other nature based muses. Her art instinctively reflects this inspiration, and although her art is abstractive, the core centre is always something pulled from the heart of nature and it's connection to the human spirit. Her faith in God and her dedication to spiritual exploration is infused into each and every piece.
Although her education in Computer Science and previous work experience was of a technical nature, she has always been exploring and expressing her ideas, thoughts, emotions and curiosities through art. Starting out as a sculpture, she began painting in 2006. Through her paintings and collage, she discovered the ability to grow and establish her artistic voice.
Texture, muted colour and organic shapes are often found within her still life, landscape and non objective pieces. She seamlessly infuses an array of handmade or painted collage paper into her paintings, creating her signature style.
In 2016, she was awarded "2015 Arts in Public Places - Artist of the Year" in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta. Her piece entitled "Roots" is now a permanent part of the Fort Saskatchewan art collection. Recognized as an emerging Alberta artist, Tammy's art is very much a reflection of her passion for life and her works are part of many private and civic collections.
Artist Statement
My goal, as an artist, is to create art that is not only esthetically pleasing, but speaks to the heart, soul, mind and stirs emotion. I enjoy the challenge of combing texture, colour, shape and composition to create a unified piece that tells a story.
When I was a young child, I became extremely interested in image. My father and grandmother were both avid photographers and I remember being entranced with the beautiful photographs they would create with their cameras. I soon discovered that I too could create beauty using my box of colourful crayons and markers. I began exploring the world around me and expressing the emotions and thoughts evoked through the creative process of drawing and "painting" with my crayons and markers.
While attending the Univeristy of Manitoba, I was introduced into the world of sculpting and fell in love with creating art with my hands. All of my sculptures were created using paper clay and polymer clay and were tiny minatures. During this time period, I discovered I had a deep interest in painting and purchased my first watercolour set. Within a couple of years, I moved into the world of acrylics and have been exploring art ever since.
My works are certainly abstract, simple and often muted and earthy. I love nature and it is deeply reflected in my work. As I continue to grow as an artist, I enjoy the challenge of being authentic and allowing my artistic vision and voice to guide me.
My main medium of choice is acrylic paint, although I do like to add other water soluble mediums such as watercolour and gauche paint to my mixed media pieces. The majority of my works contain some collage elements. I create my own collage papers by painting, staining, printing and zentangling rice paper, artist tissue paper, watercolour and mixed media paper. Although I do sometimes use "found paper", I tend to enjoy incorporating my handmade paper into my work because it is unique and truly is one of a kind. The substrates I use in my work are canvas, panel, watercolour paper and board. All my works are protected with UV stabilizer and gloss medium. I also like adding metal, sand and other dimensional, textural elements to my work. Some of my pieces also have designs incorporated by "painting" with India ink and dip pens.