Bio

Originally from Louisiana, Applegate has been a resident of Los Angeles for the last fifty years. She has been able to successfully combine her profession as an educational psychologist with her art practice. During her years as a psychologist and special education specialist she was awarded two grants from the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department. These grants included an after school art program she designed for learning disabled students. The second grant was awarded in 1992 after the Los Angeles civil unrest. This was a community based art collaborative program that was designed to help reunite the ethnically diverse community.

Statement

Elements of hatching, blooming and growing can be seen in most of these pieces. They are tactilely alluring and imbued with warm feminine sensuality. Viewer’s reactions to the pieces often include a smile and an irresistible desire to touch.

The stockings inherit sensuality lends itself to many variations and interpretations.  The “balls” that dominate many of the pieces invoke breasts, cells, embryos and flowers. They address the issues of creation in a whimsical and flamboyant manner. All speak of creating. Even the more sensual pieces speak of continuation of life force. They are as much about a playful delight in the body’s senses as they are the fabric, colors, furnishings and food our society uses to satisfy our very physical desire for stimulation.