It all began in December of 1992...I was wrapping holiday gifts and decided to use some stickers I had on hand to decorate holiday packages wrapped in brown paper. I just let my mind wonder and had a blast decorating the packages. I ran out of tape so went to the Beacon Hill Hardware Store to get more and that's when then I saw it...A rack of colored electrical tape! The light bulb went off in my head and I bought one role of every color and an Exacto knife. That evening I created my first piece of tape art: A city park scene emerged from the stickers and tape.

I have been playing with tape ever since. I love the elasticity and movement it allows and the vibrant colors it comes in. What began as a unique way to wrap gifts has evolved into a passion, bordering on obsession, for tape. Wherever I go, I keep searching for different colors of tape to play with.

My formal “training” was two drawing classes taken as an undergraduate student at UMass Amherst in the late 1980’s. I earned two masters degrees – Social Work and Public Health – from Boston University and working in the field of public health as a program evaluator with a love for the visual presentation of data and information. In 2008 I received a Certificate in Graphic Design from the Museum of Fine Arts School in Boston.

My art collection continues to grow as I explore shapes, color and the use of negative space to bring to life images and designs and new surfaces on which to display them. All of my work is 2-dimensional and the graphic style lends it self well to printing and reproduction. I am excited to continue creating new artwork and building my graphic design portfolio.

What does “Kokoro” mean? Kokoro is the Japanese kanji (word) for heart, core, and spirit. I was looking through an English/Japanese dictionary while thinking about my artwork and what I was currently working on (a series of heart designs) and literally flipped to this word – Kokoro. The meaning resonated and I liked the minimal lines of the written kanji. Eventually, I created my logo using a formal interpretation of the type written kanji and, in my usual form, used the negative cuttings of tape to a sort of reflection of the kanji back onto itself. And now I call my studio and business Kokoro Designs as a constant reminder to myself to step back, simplify and tap into my core when creating a new design.

Click here to learn about my upcoming shows and where you can purchase my art work.