A natural artist all her
life, Lorie grew up in Redondo Beach, California. As an adolescent she spent 2 1/2
years in then West Germany fascinated by the abundant diversity in culture and artwork of
the European countries she visited with her family.
Though the works she was most inspired by during her travels were Copenhagen's
"Little Mermaid" and Michelangelo's "Pieta", she did not attempt sculpture herself until she
was a young mother. Rather, she concentrated her artistic efforts on painting,
costume and clothing design for herself and others.
She married not long after High School graduation and
by the time she was 20 she was a mother of two daughters.
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She considers her two free-spirited
daughters the most beautiful and perfect of creations she ever had the honor of
collaborating on.
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| Not surprisingly then, the
first sculptural piece she created was a Mother and Child ornament designed to hang on a
makeshift Christmas tree when her children were very small. |
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She explains," We had no money and I couldn't bear the
thought of my children not having some kind of Christmas tree, so I draped
an ugly
olive green bedspread over my painting easel and proceeded to decorate it by pinning
brooches, necklaces and earrings to it. I wanted the girls to understand that
beneath everything else, Christmas was about a mother and her child. So with all my
heart I sculpted this first piece of Mary with baby Jesus using a diaper pin and a crochet
hook to hang on that pretend tree."
Later, as a single working mother, she sculpted off
and on for several years mostly personalized ornaments, mermaids, gifts and altar pieces
for Women's Spirituality.
Then suddenly in 1990, owing to an untreatable,
hereditary, degenerative disease of the peripheral nervous system she lost the use of her
hands and feet. Difficult to diagnose, she was mistakenly treated and operated on
for various disorders such as bi-lateral wrist strain and possible Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
(RSI).
After many painful tests and
experimental drug therapies the long awaited diagnosis was CMT (Charcot
Marie Tooth) Disease.
The prognosis was that the best she could
hope for was that it wouldn't get worse, but it did. The pain was severe and she was
heavily medicated.
As a passionate artist with a strong need to create
and express herself, yet unable physically to even maintain a reliable grasp of her tools it
felt like the end had already come. She experienced a true dark night of the soul.
As a last hope, she traveled to West Jordan, Utah upon
a friend's recommendation to see Dr Loveland, an alternative healthcare provider,
Chiropractor and TBM
practitioner who turned out to be one of those angels that walk the earth
disguised as a human being. "I was practically carried into the office but I
walked out on my own." she says. After only a couple of visits and occasional
"tune-ups", she became completely free of the disease and its debilitating
affects as evidenced by the intricacy of her current work.
That was 1993 and since then, Dr Loveland has
influenced her life as friend, healer, spiritual teacher and patron of her
art. (He retired in 2005 leaving many grateful patients better for his
gifts and influence.)
One night in 1995 following a sudden impulse to escape
the boredom of her 4 years in Rexburg, Idaho Lorie drove to a gas station,
fueled up her Honda Civic and asking for directions drove to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She
spent the weekend there and met her husband who had also traveled impulsively to Wyoming
from Utah on a snowboarding adventure with some friends.
After 11 years of being a single mother her toad-kissing days had finally come to an end.
Prior to committing to her art career she became a
licensed Massage Therapist enabling her to travel and work in her husband's native
Australia. "Massage is very portable and it feels natural to me since it feels
so similar to sculpture." she says. The anatomy portion of the education,
particularly the cadaver labs, added a whole new dimension to her work, as has the
compassion she learned in dealing with so many people in need of healing.
The name "Sculpture From The Heart" was
coined by her husband and expresses his sincere understanding that her work is exactly
that. Infused with emotion and passion her work has a healing effect on
others. As one admirer put it "She sculpts with more than her hands."
The images she now creates with dental and chiropodist
tools are at once earthy and ethereal, sensual and inspired.
Her primary medium is polymer clay and many
of her designs have been reproduced in resin and bronze. She also has
a whole line of pewter produced and distributed by Baker Art Foundry.
When she and her husband travel
to Australia to visit family and friends they try to arrange their trip so they can
attend the Melbourne Cup Horse Race. Each time she has worn a
hat of her own creation that incorporates
her art and sense of humor .
My Impish Grin,
sold primarily on eBay, is Lorie's line of humorous and often irreverent pieces
that express her sense of humor and provide balance in her artistic
expression.
Her work has appeared in Doll Magazine as
well as
Polymer Clay, Creative Traditions by Judy Belcher and
Artful Ways
with Polymer Clay by Dotty McMillan.
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