From isolation and poverty in rural Colorado, my family moved to Boulder, a center of liberal education and intellectual resources. Worthy of circus-side-show status, the nature of my family perpetuated isolation and dissimilarity. I did not perform to the expectations of the Seventh-day Adventist culture I grew up in. I wanted to pursue poetry and art. My easy abandonment of Pre-med and formal religion while in my senior year at California State University, Fullerton, exposed the absence of deep engagement with those inculcations.
I did keep my day job, though, as a Registered Nurse, concentrating my practice in the areas of Critical Care/ICU and Hospice, often working part time to allow time for art. Additionally, I went on to obtain a BS in Information Technology, and currently work in informatics roles.
Care of the sick and dying provided powerful insights and grounding that informs my art in many ways, and intensifies motives derived from emotional domains. Forces of change as expressed in Western landscapes and geology observed through many years of wandering also influence my work. Religious thought and imagery has played a part. Additionally, some of the greats of Impressionism, Abstract Expressionism, and the Postmodern mix affect the way I think about and make art. Contemporary, unknown, and emerging artists often inspire me in addition to the established icons.
I know the basic direction of travel when I begin a piece, and usually, rough ideas of form and color. I do not work from sketches or plans unless technical challenges demand such. My vision changes and grows constantly as I work, requiring frequent re-evaluation and adaptation. Some pieces are finished quickly, while others evolve over years. The process is constant; streaming intermedia.
The materials I use must complement a constantly evolving process. Media include the following: acrylic colors, adhesives, bamboo, ceramics, copper, fabrics, oil colors, oxides, plaster-based materials, resins, varnishes, and wood. Bamboo grows in prominence in my work. Its beauty, strength, and environmental benefits motivated me to establish a small bamboo nursery where I grow the pieces I incorporate into sculpture.
Although I have pursued other than the traditional paths of art career development, some conventional artistic accomplishments can be listed:
Publish Poet: Chapbook, “Getting Antsy on the Night Shift” published by Laguna Poets.
ONTHEBUS: two poems.
Eclectica: http://www.eclectica.org/v2n3/van_cleave.html, Two Poems.
Studied Ceramic Sculpture at California State University Fullerton in the early 80s, where I was greatly influenced by Jerry Rothman.
Ink and Clay, Pomona California: Group Show, 1982
Da Gallery (Now Da Center for the Arts), Pomona, California: Two Man Show, 1983.
Common Ground Gallery, Fullerton, California: Member Artist, multiple group shows.
Studied Ceramic Sculpture under Patrick Crab, Rancho Santiago Community College, Santa Ana, California, 1984. “Most Original Artist” award in the Student Show.
Christine’s of Santa Fe, Laguna Beach, California: Represented Artist. The Laguna gallery has since closed. The Santa Fe location is still operating.
Topanga Canyon Gallery 2009 Juried Open
Gallery 204, Vista California, the gallery of the Vista Arts Foundation: Current Member Artist. Multiple group shows. Multiple First Place awards, May, 2009 to present.