Artist's Statement

          My varied bodies of documentary portraiture speak longingly of closeness in the family and in communities and express, with compassion, the conditions of women’s lives, especially my own.  My “Family Bed” series traces the subtle movements of my husband and I and our two babies as we sleep, with photos taken at 15-minute intervals throughout the night.  The series is dreamy and intimate, tiring, mythic, and a compelling argument for nurturing touch.  I am also drawn to creating images using leaves and foliage as in the large triptych (01 in image list) now owned by CMCP.  In the stark brilliance of my recent photos, dark dandelion leaves thrust upward toward the sun with perseverance and hardy adaptability.  The dandelions’ bold, jagged forms and totem-like strength set against an ethereal blue sky are an inspiration for environmental caring and gentle humour.

Biography

     Frances lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan near the riverbank where she finds a lot of the leaves she photographs. She is originally from Loon Lake, Saskatchewan and still returns there with her family to camp and explore the family farm.

     She pursued art studies in Saskatoon, Ottawa and Chicago. She received a MFA degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1985.  She has taught photography as a sessional at the U of S since 1987.