Animals display emotion accurately. Implying that animals communicate honestly all the time, I believe that animals are authentic selves, more so than people. For example, animals commit violent acts, but not acts of nonsensical cruelty. Animals are inherently good. This belief system underpins my artwork, in works on paper in which animals are stand-ins for myself. Perhaps even more faithful than a self-portrait, the process of using an animal as stand-in enables me to show my own idiosyncrasies.  I juxtapose images of animals with text that expresses human thoughts and emotions. For stand-ins, I depict the most prevalent of pets--dogs and cats--with whom I am most familiar. In addition, I portray common birds, though not domesticated birds in cages. As well, I am passionate about the plight of endangered species; so endangered species are another category of stand-ins. However, animals are not the subjects of my work. The subject is human sentiments and anxieties.