Materials: The materials in my mixed media constructions, collage or otherwise, are fixed and archival. Starting with pure powdered pigments, I make my own paints by creating an emulsion of gum arabic and glycerin mixed in with the mineral color. Often times, these natural sands and powders are collected and processed from nature by me; an array of deep reds and terra cottas come from areas as far-ranging as the Salt Region of central Pakistan, or the ancient strata of our own Grand Canyon. Sun-bleached ochres and earthy umbers were similarly extracted from the oxide-rich layers of the Southwest, and a creamy white paste can result from the crushing of the mother-of-pearl inside freshwater mussels. Acid-free Bristol drawing paper and pH-neutral rice pages are stained and coated with the new paint and laid down on cotton museum board with bookbinder’s glue (PVA, or Poly-vinyl Acetate: a stable polymer). Incising, abrading, folding and any other physical technique of “weathering” the papers so as to look as though they’ve had a previous life or utility is done purely by hand, using elementary painting and printmaking instruments. In the uncommon occurrence of directly appropriated materials, such as vintage photographs, stamps or text, these pieces are treated so as to make them more chemically stable for longer preservation. In the case where a finished artwork is framed, it is always attached to a linen or cotton matte ground, using conservator’s gum and cloth hinges. The “hand made” dimension of my work is critical, not only to its stability as an object, but to the intimacy of its overall reading.