Artist Bio/statement
My passion for creating is deeply rooted as I was raised in a large and creative family near Powell River, BC where my Mother introduced us to many engaging crafts during the rainy season. As a child I would draw in beach sand or into leather hard mud with a stick after the rain created wonderful hard-pack drawing tablets. Give me a brown paper bag and I would turn it into a colorful crayola creation fit for the Gods; Fire Gods that is, as my parents needed the bags to light the alder wood in the old stove that heated the house on damp coastal mornings. I continued to draw any subject I could, be it from a magazine, a photo or coercing my younger brother to sit and pose for me.
Throughout life, my art though diverse, tends to lean towards naturalism. I paint portraits of birds, animals and people as well as florals and landscapes. My media is acrylic, watercolor, chalk pastels, or alternative mono-print techniques such as nature-prints. I actively read, study art and most recently began creating textile hangings combining my photographs and digital paintings pigment printed onto fabric embellished with found objects.
As a mature student I attended the University of Calgary graduating in 2002 having been granted a “Degree with Distinction” in visual arts.
Over the years I have been involved in many art exhibitions as well as shared my artistic interests by teaching visual arts through city programs in Camrose, Calgary, Hinton, AB, and Manitoba.
I become immersed in the purposeful act of painting as it is meditative and a way to create and share colorful joy of Creations beauty with others. I persevere searching out new ways to depict Gods grace and beauty in the world around us.
