She started writing and drawing at an early age and by the time she attended University of British Columbia, she had already established a unique artistic style.

[citation needed] In the early 1960s, she became acquainted with an informal group of "Downtown Poets," including writers such as Gladys (Maria) Hindmarch, John Newlove, Bill Bissett, Gerry Gilbert, Maxine Gadd and Roy Kiyooka, centered around the Vancouver venues of Sound Gallery, Motion Studio and Intermedia Press.

In the Introduction to the anthology Four Parts Sand,[3] she describes her work in the following manner: "Poem-drawings are an attempt to fuse visual and verbal perceptions.

The eye sees, the ear hears, movement is felt kinaesthetically throughout the body and all these sensations are perceived in heart, belly and brain.

The aims are the same as in other forms of literature and art: concentration and communication, delight, immersion in the present moment."