Welcome!
I love color and I feel energized when surrounded by a vast language of colors! My images reflect an inner buoyancy and progressive optimism. Abstract painting is not something I wanted to try on…it is way beyond that. It is a part of who I am, a part of my personality….my nature. I am a native of the Southwest Oregon Redwood Coastal region. I grew up playing in the Redwoods & coastal beaches knowing, feeling & respecting the physical giant, rugged power, beauty & freedom of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Later in life, knowing & understanding the straight forward-infinite landscapes of the Texas Panhandle and the surround-sound of the enchanted, spiritual environment of New Mexico.
The Rear View Mirror
My earlier works of art were developed at The Stout-McCourt Gallery, located in the avant-garde, bohemian music and arts district known as “Deep Ellum” in Dallas, Texas. My studio was located above the Stout-McCourt Gallery from the late 1980’s until 1993, when I moved to New Mexico. As New Mexico does…..it attracts artists due to its' unique light. Sometimes, late in the afternoon-it can be a sienna retro-filter, casting a hue of purple shadows on the mountains, sometimes its a warm highlighter of golden light dancing through the deserts, sometimes its the powerful reds of the sunrise…..sometimes its the luminous oranges and yellows of the sunset. It is a never-ending love I have found...how I love the freedom, the mystery, and the individualistic expression of abstract works of art. It comes from the soul, with its' own language, its' own way of life - captured, caressed by a painters touch, it arrives alive, vibrant and then archived upon its vessel.
Studio Life
As I start a painting, I think about how I would like each painting to have its own kind of personality while still being a reflection of my series of work. Once I begin, my work begins to guide me.
My paintings are created through a series of many layers and textures and are not created all at once. I currently have 3 easels in my studio and this allows me to work on several paintings each day, unless it is a special project and then I will focus on that project.
I work in oil, acrylic, oil stick, pastels, paint pens and use a variety of textures like sand, pumice, glass beads or actual paint to create different kinds of surfaces and effects.