“Handmade paper is delicate and inherently flawed, just like the textured surfaces of my oil paintings. I love rough surfaces so much because they remind me of the scars and imperfections of being human. So, I began thinking of what could represent the idea of how we, as humans, try and look and feel our best each day, regardless of how we might feel at any moment. And the answer struck me -- gold! The idea was to play literally upon the notion of “dressing up” something that is not so perfect - something many of us do every day to feel good about ourselves. The oh-so-delicate golf leaf, placed upon the rough surface, has so much meaning for me. I’ve had many challenging times in my life, and there have been many days that needed a little gold in them.”