My recent mixed media paintings “Universal Women,” are investigations of the female form, anatomically created by joining together a variety of figurative collage material. These constructed characters are both playful and enigmatic. Composited from a multitude of cultures and time periods, the women are drawn from eclectic sources. From ancient to contemporary times, they create a nonspecific tribe of Universal Women. Existing in a world of fantasy, they are captured in attitudes of sleep, flotation, and dance against lush dream like settings. Combining torn paper, photographs, vintage wallpaper, and painted surfaces, along with materials such as cloth, twigs and wire mesh, these small painting have a strong tactile surface energy. Colorful, and jewel like, they entice the viewer in closer to investigate this intricate world of vitality and celebration.