About the GroundWorks series:

We have an unsustainable relationship with the Earth. In fact few have a direct relationship with the Earth and most of us don’t have any relationship with the Earth at all.

I grew up in a garden in Kifissia, a suburb of Athens, spending many hours outdoors, close to the ground where my grandfather was tending to his vines and roses. When the family house was sold many years later when I was mostly living and working in NY, I felt as if the earth had disappeared beneath my feet. I needed to grow new roots. Eventually I took custody of a beautiful piece of land overlooking the sea in Aegina. I bought a trailer which I named “Ground Station MIR” with access to water but no electricity, happy to live and work close to the ground, in the company of my dog Agni. I reconnected with the earth and I figured I could be living in the same fashion thousands of years ago. While contemplating and overseeing the construction of a house/studio I named “Ground Station MIR II,” I started playing with the earth and stones around me, creating several series of works.

Many years later, when my beloved cat Aprilis died prematurely, I dug a hole in the ground for his burial. I used the stones I had extracted while digging and I “replanted” them on the surface in place of a gravestone. I liked how this turned out and I kept in mind to use this technique elsewhere on my land which I have named “Stone Farm.” I was pleased to notice that the earth and the elements embraced the work, changing it and giving it an added dimension.

While digging I learned that stones and rocks maintain moisture, that they are alive and porous, they give shelter to numerous live organisms and are part of a larger ecosystem. Moisture is sought out by the roots which communicate with one another and are the most important part of the plant world: they are alive even when nothing appears above ground. Welcome to the underground!

Cut to the Fall of 2025. The weather is auspicious and I am compelled once again to explore what lies beneath my feet. I pick a spot and draw a circle on the ground following the unbidden prompts on where to go from there. Next I drew an isosceles triangle-- a universal symbol-- followed by a Snake --the year of the snake was coming to an end-- and last I drew a Golden Spiral inscribed in a golden rectangle which always fascinated me. The series came about as a visceral need to go beyond the surface and create order out of chaos. I started seeing the stones as unique individuals and I handpicked each one for the creation of the works. GroundWorks was born.

See available prints below.