Artist Statement

I Have been painting for as long as I can remember. I was born in Portland Oregon the middle child of seven children. Although my parents couldn't afford for me to have art lessons, they took me to libraries and museums for exposure to the great art masters.  At 17 years old, I had earned enough money to take a private art lesson. The instructor encouraged me to read about and try to copy paintings by the masters. This exercise helped me learn about the lives and struggles of these great painters. Throughout the years, I had lived in central California and moved to the New Orleans area in 1990, a haven for artists and culture,  where I resided for nearly 12 years.  I took lessons and joined artist groups as often as possible and was lucky enough to know and work with some great painters and artists who influenced, inspired, and encouraged me to continue to pursue a life as an artist. The most important influence was to take private painting study with the prominent fine artist, Valery Kosorukov who was previously professor of drawing and painting at the Surikov Moscow State Academy Art Institute who had moved to New Orleans in the 1990's until the early 2000's. My life changed a bit in 2000 and I moved to Las Vegas , St. Paul Minnesota, and then back to Las Vegas where I have lived since 2003. I have a home art studio and have been involved with the art culture.  I am  also on the advisory board for the Las Vegas Artists Guild.  

No matter where I have lived, I make sure I always had a work space in which to paint. If I'm not painting, I certainly am thinking about painting. It is a space where I am most comfortable. I also have a library of over 200 art books which are my most prized possession. In these books, are stories of the struggles, insecurities, rejections, and the hard work of the greatest artists in the world. These books taught me something of what it is to be a painter.

I usually paint in oils. Oils have a flexibility and depth of color and are easy  to manipulate. Since a lot of my work has been derived from commissions, I've learned to paint in a few different styles and have a flexible vision. I had mostly been painting in a contemporary and realistic manner until the lockdown imposed because of the virus in 2020. That year began my attempt at abstract painting which I find a great exercise in portraying emotions with color and form.

My philosophy as an artist and painter is to alway be open and aware that there is beauty presented to us every minute of every day in everything.