The reason I paint is to elicit from the viewer either a memory of a past event, of a place they have been, or a dream of something yet to come. It can be best expressed by a recent client who told me that she could not believe the emotions my painting stirred in her, and how she knew she had to purchase the painting immediately. I seek to touch people with fond remembrances and with hopes and dreams for future adventures.

Acrylic is the medium I use because of the vivid colors that are intended to catch the viewer’s attention. I appreciate that it is a fast-drying medium so I can paint quickly. I usually feel the emotion I am seeking to evoke as I paint, and this oftentimes leads me to use a dryer between colors as I am excited to get the next color down.

When not painting, I am thinking about the paintings I have in progress, as well as ideas for future paintings. I keep my eyes open for additional elements to add to my paintings. I am always taking in my environment, keenly aware of colors I see and the shapes of everything my eyes land on. I think about what colors I can use together. I even dream about color.

The flowers I paint are always oversize and joyful. The landscapes I paint are of places that the viewer may have been to, or dream about going to. I keep my compositions simple, to try to let the painting’s subject and colors speak to the viewer with a stirred memory, or a dream of future adventures.

After spending decades of working in business administration and as an attorney, I am now retired and live and paint in North Carolina.  I have spent decades training as an artist by attending formal classes, visiting art museums, participating in numerous artist workshops, and visiting other artists’ exhibitions.  I have studied under accomplished artists from Chicago, Florida, North Carolina, and Georgia. I have sold to collectors in multiple states, and my awards and exhibits include participation in an international exhibit. While still employed, I provided artistic services by way of graphic design, illustration and murals to small businesses and individuals.

Now retirement allows me the time to engage in my passion, to express feelings with my paintings. I strive to produce work that people can emotionally connect with, whether it be a fond memory of the past, or a future dream or adventures yet to be fulfilled.  I will consider myself to have created a successful painting when I have evoked an emotional response in the viewer.