© 1997 By Lisa Skolnik, Columnist Chicago Tribune

On Form: "I see myself as a painter of peasant baroque," quips Silin-Palmer, "and viewing my work in the tradition of Italian furniture helped me create and develop my three-dimensional trompe l'oeil technique. I plan each tableau from the bottom up, and have the furniture actually built to match each concept." Pieces can be as simple as an armoire trimmed with metal straps or a fantastical bed of roses. "Basically, I'm playing games with both the wood and paint."

On Substance: Silin-Palmer's creations are not only extraordinary and unique, they necessitate and active and far-reaching imagination. For inspiration, "I spend hours in museums looking at things, I listen to Renaissance music when I work and I read Shakespeare, " She says. "I also try to explore every alternative whenever possible," she points out, noting that she's tried "every conceivable option with the cube, " or mine her memory for "different pictorial images from history that I reinterpret into three-dimensional formats."

On Getting Started: Surprisingly Silin-Palmer works without preliminary sketches for her work. "I visualize each piece in my head, and they come into being. Putting something on paper first can be limiting," she maintains, though when a new idea is germinating, she often discusses it with a carpenter she commissions to build the type of piece she needs to execute it.