Education:

1992 Fall Residency Program; Vermont Studio Center; Johnson, Vermont

1988-1991 Studio II, Westport, Connecticut

1986-1989 Silvermine School of Art; New Canaan, Connecticut

1975 BFA with Honors; California College of Arts & Crafts,

Oakland, California (now California College of the Arts)

Artist Statement:

I was classically trained in figure drawing at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California. My passion for drawing stems from a lifelong habit of being the constant observer; the person no one notices in the corner with a sketchbook and pencil in hand. My sketchbooks serve as a visual journal and diary of narratives; people and places recorded through the use of line, shapes, color, atmosphere, attitudes and tension of a given moment, perhaps at a small concert or in a crowded airport.

Domesticity has always been the foundation of my daily life, growing up in the South in a rather large family. My personal experiences, from both memories and sketchbooks, have left me with a vast reserve of stories. Vintage artifacts are the vessels with which I, as a painter, may use as an aide throughout my investigations and studies of the past. Additional ideas for new pieces wait in my sketchbooks to further stimulate the beginning processes of a work. My “stuff” is personal and the color choices on my palette have special meaning with designated purposes. Color is a science in which controlled and knowledgeable use is tantamount to finding true expression of my senses at work. The viscosity of oils and the playful, yet, forgiving quality of gouache are my preferred mediums, often using gesso-coated paper, vellum or wood panels.

Working quite large used to be my preferred strategy in raising my voice in order to convey my message. The procedure in which I paint today is spent with more time for creative and decisive conclusions to be resolved in each piece. My goal is to be in a constant state of evolution through process and practice. It is most about the practice.