artist statement: The Portal

Inspired by a particular redwood found along the Chimney Beach trails at Lake Tahoe. I did not grow up in Northern Nevada, and I was not familiar with the hiking trails at Chimney Beach. But my partner, Kory Day, spent his childhood going to the beaches there at Lake Tahoe and he would tell stories of his time there. I’ve only gone to Chimney Beach and Secret Cove, so I was up for the adventure along the hiking trails there. I loved hiking when I was younger, so I was amazed with the beautiful trees there and the wildlife at Lake Tahoe, but the best part was seeing this redwood tree that had a small arch. Standing at 4’10, I had to go through what I call “the portal” under the tree. The inner child in me felt like magic happened as I went through “the portal”, as if I went to an alternate dimension. So I wanted to create that magic that I felt seeing that tree for the first time with a magical portal underneath.