I was born in Burlington, Vermont but have lived in London, England for nearly 40 years. For the last 20 years, I have divided my time between London and Courchevel, in the French Alps, but I always pass through Vermont in the summer.
We are so excited to collaborate with you. Why did you choose to collaborate with Skida?
I chose Skida because I have loved Skida from the moment Corinne began creating her wonderful hats and because I wanted to support a female run company from Vermont!
Can you talk a little about your design process for the Dede Johnston for Skida print?
The design for the Skida print is based on imagery from my photography 'Crowded Slopes' in which I observed how people herd together on safely groomed, protected pistes. The isolated skiers perform a sort of choreographed ballet; seen from afar, the little skiers create an abstract design, which I Iove.
How did growing up in Vermont influence your art? How did you first become interested in photography and design?
Growing up in Shelburne, Vermont I loved visiting the Shelburne Museum and eventually worked there during the summers when I was in school. This nurtured an appreciation for all kinds of art and I developed an eye for design and composition. Following a degree in Art History at Middlebury College, I worked at Sotheby's in New York.
My love of wintry landscapes and skiing stayed with me when I moved to London, England and I soon built a house in the French Alps. At this time, I also returned to school to study photography.
How would you describe your process of transferring a landscape you find on your travels to a piece of art? What elements of a scene are your eyes drawn to?
For me, photography is a way of conveying my feelings about man's relationship with the alpine environment. I am fascinated with observing patterns in skiers and their reverence for and fear of mountains and the uncontrollable forces of nature.
I went on to document the fragile beauty of arctic landscapes, traveling to Greenland, Patagonia, Alaska and Iceland. More recently, I became absorbed with exploring abstraction in nature, particularly in snow and ice.
