Artist Statement
I have been a professional oil painter since 1997, but my interest in art started from the first time I held a crayon. I never outgrew a fascination with drawing and color. After receiving a BFA in Graphic Design in 1981, I worked in advertising for 14 years as a designer and later Art Director while continuing to study painting. I was invited into my first gallery in 1995, and was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to paint as much as time would allow until I left my design career to pursue art on a full time basis. I work mostly in oils preferring to stretch my own canvases.
I grew up in the north where the winters are long and gray and the summers often overcast. Moving to the South opened my eyes to the wonderful colors around us from the gold and greens in the marsh grasses to the myriad colors that can happen in the sky as the sun rises and sets. There is a magic that happens as the sun arcs across the sky and slowly slides toward the horizon and I try capture a hint of that magic. I am very humbled by the reaction to my paintings by viewers and truly love what I do. My paintings are meant to capture a mood, more than a place. I want my paintings to convey solitude, wonder, peace, surprise and joy. There is no deep philosophical essence motivating me while I paint, I just get lost in the process. However if someone sees some deep philosophical essence in one of my paintings, good for them!
Artist Background
Youngstown State University
Bachelor of Fine Arts, 1981