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we'll start with birth, seems as good a place as any. i was born 14 July 1983 in my grandparents' cabin (in pinetop, az), delivered by my father (the midwife was late, or i was early, rather) during a thunderstorm (summer monsoons have, since birth, been my favorite time of year). apparently i came out like a shot. my father still sometimes calls me dunder becker (thunder clap child), a family name for the moody child, though for me i think it was meant to be more literal. but this is lore to me, a place of no conscious memory.
my first memories occur at our house in tucson (where we lived until i was six). they are the stuff of big sister, her infinite protection, my mother's garden, wet dirt, impatiently pulling up carrots too soon and shoving them back in the soil... dancing to records in our living room with my dad, rock collecting, the sandbox, snails, our granddaddy tree with the swing dad built, rolling down hills with my mom, baton twirling, green corduroy overalls, pig tails, construction paper and visits to "the farm" (our future home).
i had been sexually abused as a very small child, and from a young age i was encouraged to use art, both in counseling and at home, as a means to let out the demons. images above words have always been easier for me to access. drawing was always an empowering activity- a way to say things i didn't know how to say and still don't know how to say. my flickerings of memories have no verbal aspect to them, but still they're as much a part of me as any of my history.
we moved and i spent the rest of my childhood in a small, rural community, with a forty acre back yard and housing conditions that most americans would consider "camping"; no running water; we often had a computer but rarely a television. as such my childhood consisted of tree houses, underground forts, named trees, bathing in creeks, shitting in the woods (as it were), and skinned knees. here again creativity, imagination and art offered an outlet for me. at age nine my mother's best friend began teaching me techniques she was learning from community college art courses. it was at this time that i started seeing art as a possible career. soon after my (now taller than me ) kid sister was born. she's been an incalculable influence on my life- sister, dear friend, daughter, tiny adversary, and most recently, humblingly, source of shoulder to lean on.
as a child, through my teen years, and as an adult i've always admired my parents and especially their work. [visit http://www.regenesisgroup.com/] as the product of such a small, somewhat backwards community, i could have very easily been stifled culturally. certainly it was my parents' intelligence, individualism, and connection to the outside world that kept us from that. their visiting friends who always treated us as adults (or at the very least worthy of their time), various trips associated with their work lives (once to baja, often to santa fe), and the groups of prescott college students who came for month long permaculture courses throughout my preteendom. all of these people and places, these outward forces, played a large role in my formation.
highschool was unpleasant..... my art teacher listened to rush limbaugh during class. we'll leave it at that.
in my late teens i moved to phoenix to live with my big sister (who was then and remains to this day a very close friend). a short while later i moved to san diego (as soon as i'd realized how much i hated phoenix) and found myself influenced heavily (readily) by tattoo, rockabilly and mexicana culture. this was a period of awakening for me (as with most teens, fresh out of their parents' house) and i found myself, for the first time since my childhood, making art outside of just a skillset and more as a representation of who i am. fuel was added to that fire by my intense interest in individualism and the support and kindnesses of my best friend and boyfriend; i've been growing as an artist (in skill and emotionally) ever since.
in 2004 we moved back to arizona for the monsoons and the proximity to family. currently i reside in tucson with my man-child, evan and our cats, rory and ramona. you can look at my paintings, jewelry and clothing line in person at:
bohemia artisan's emporium
299 s. park avenue
tucson, az 85719
bohemiatucson.com. |
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