About
I came into the world loud and learned to modulate-on-demand. A born creative, I played with mud and food, but thankfully, not at the same time. I am a born optimist with an eye toward the “big picture,” but my natural positive attitude does not obscure awareness of the negative. It is, rather, a bull-headed choice to see and seize the good; and if you hang around me, watch out, I’ll make you look!
Most days, I get messy and clean up. It is a vicious cycle of sweeping proportions (pun intended). You may find me in the studio painting huge canvases, teaching, sketching, learning a language, or outside digging a hole for a pond project or feeding the fish and birds. My aloof cat, Ami, takes it all in stride, but sometimes, if I look quickly, I catch her trying to speak to the birds. Sundays, I go to two different churches and try to love God increasingly throughout my days. Hopefully, I will be doing more of the same (only better) for years to come! La vida es buena! Keep learning and sharing!
My Artistic Vision: “To paint the unseen things which are: the Truth, the Battle, the Heart.” ©
Art speaks visually. In my art, I strive to communicate complex truths and struggles through art and poetry.
My art can be categorized as contemporary conceptual where the narrative and meaning takes precedence over technical construction. Sources and inspiration for my images have come from my own questions, life experience, concepts, and my relationships with God and others. I have been influenced by the classical skill of Michelangelo, the twists of Salvador Dali, and the joyful genius of Theodore Geisel.
I paint predominately in oil or watercolor incorporating mixed media when found objects aid in rendering the message of the work. Over time, I have expanded my skill through creating oil portraits of people, places, and pets. Currently, commission requests are rarely accepted in order to focus on illuminating epic ideas.
Movement of ideas or people are shown through what I call “harping” which illustrates parts of action and reaction within a single piece. Using palette knives are also integral to the process and generate variety and excitement. Although I have been an artist all my life, I began working on this type of art in 2014 after having a dream in which I painted in this manner.
As mentioned, my overall vision is “to paint the unseen things which are …” or creating visual narratives, such as winning the battle over fear (see “The Crutches/Clutches of Fear”) or the success of producing good work despite rough environments (see “Garra”).
I seek to make viewers think about their own actions and reactions, and ultimately realize that success is within their grasp. Recent work, such as “Day Stars” and “The UnChosen: a Requiem” incorporate poems. In future work, I will endeavor to push the boundaries of my skill to successfully convey multiple meanings in a single piece.
Since my ideas are bigger than my world, I seize every precious moment to be the best creative I can be.