Meet the Artist

I have been drawing and painting for as long as I can remember. I was fortunate to begin formal art study with avian artist Florence Guise and to continue with her twin brother, renowned seascape artist Charles Vickery, for a total of ten years in their curious, quirky, and inspirational studio in LaGrange, Illinois. Later I received additional training at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. Living outside of Chicago afforded me regular exposure to many great local artists and the Art Institute’s brilliant and varied collections. Happily, in 1987 I relocated to North Georgia where beauty and inspiration abound. At this point in my life, painting, and art are inextricably woven throughout everything I do and are constantly in my thoughts, with potential paintings all around me.

My artistic goal is to portray the beauty observed in the everyday world and to communicate impressions and sentiments to others. Each piece of art is a personal visual account of sights and experiences that have touched my sensibility. Using memories, sketches, and photographs from travels as inspiration and reference, the composition of a painting is developed – rearranging things in exciting and sometimes unexpected ways.

The method used varies depending on the subject matter. For figures, an “under-painting” or sketch of the figure in sepia is rendered to establish tonality before applying a series of transparent glazes of color. For most other subjects and scenes paint colors are applied directly without a preliminary under-painting, known as alla prima.

​Favorite subjects are the fascinating and familiar human figure, majestic and powerful horses, resplendent and sometimes humorous birds, and ever-changing water and nature. The work is pure optimism and nostalgic fondness for simple and joyful motifs and a great appreciation for truly representing the essence of a thing, all of which contribute to a realistic, expressive, and vivid style.