Chhodrtens are ancient sacred structures I encountered in Nepal while traveling in Southeast Asia in 1987-88. They are hermetically sealed, cannot be entered, and relics are placed within them. Devotees would circumambulate around them for hours on end, deeply connecting with what could not be seen or known.  Exposure to the highly spiritual cultures in India, Nepal and Indonsia had a profound impact on my work, which led me to explore aspects of existence which are neither visible nor tangible, but that may be known and experienced in a metaphorical darkness.  My art making process is akin to the experience offered by many temples in India, where the gradual passage through various concentric walls – like the passage through layers in my work – finally leads to the literal dark of the innermost part of the temple which is called the sanctum sanctorum. Those ancient stone temples seemed to emerge from the earth, as if they were coming into view from concealment.