The first time I visited the coast of Maine, it felt familiar.  Something about the craggy beaches and variations of gray sky and Atlantic waves echoed in an unexpected way.  In a conversation with another Maine-lover, he mentioned collective memory: the idea that we hold memory for events — and in this case — places, in sort of a cultural collective.  I began making encaustic pieces that contained references to the landscapes where I was painting, building a collective memory in the work itself.  Often those references are photographs I have taken that I print on silk and layer into the work.  Sometimes the pieces might be metal, plant life, fabric, or beeswax from a particular region.  For me it is a way to revere our natural history and to connect my work to time and place.