The original lightsaber from Star Wars was made of everyday materials the propmakers had at hand: a camera flash, plumbing parts, windshield wipers. I make the props in my paintings out of ordinary items: a squirt gun becomes a raygun, a plastic lamp globe becomes a space helmet, a clear box becomes a mysterious prize. Each new painting is a chance for me to transform regular stuff into totemic objects, and transform myself into a sexy sci-fi pinup girl. Through my work I get to inhabit a fantasy world built from scratch.

I think of each painting as a snapshot, like a cover of a comic book or science fiction paperback, but without the attendant disappointment in the actual story. Each is a single image cut from time, crammed full of lush details and the promise of sex and action. I want my paintings to capture a feeling of mystery, intrigue and tension, the frustrated desire to know what has just happened and what might happen next.

My secondary body of work is a series of small paintings on panel. These one-liners are ideas and found images that emerge while I am preparing the larger pieces.