About The Artist
Gallery Artist
Tall Grass Arts Association, Park Forest IL — 2008-present
Artist's Guild Member
Union Street Gallery, Chicago Heights IL — 2009-present
Artist’s Statement
I never stopped making art but I spent a lot of years letting it take a back seat to family and work. When I starting painting in oils again I was reminded of how much making art meant to me and began to devote time to it. Intending to concentrate on relearning skills and the basics, I began with still life drawings and paintings of objects I could arrange in my studio. About that time I began experimenting with pastels — a medium I hadn’t used successfully before. The still life work eventually evolved into oil paintings and pastel drawings of fruits and vegetables set against interesting fabrics. I am fascinated by the shapes and colors available in the produce department and the addition of patterned fabric added not just a challenge (the original intent), but a way of seeing that has expanded as I notice pattern & rhythm in landscape paintings. I starting doing more landscapes and I draw en plein air when I can, but landscapes and garden paintings are also sometimes based on my photos and sketches. Almost all of my finished work used to be in oil paints, but I find myself working mostly with pastels now. I am delighted by the intense, rich color and I am finding my art changing as I learn more about the medium.
In addition to the still life and landscape paintings, I have always loved drawing from the model and currently attend the figure drawing workshops at Tall Grass in Park Forest, Illinois. I primarily use pencil for quick sketch and for longer studies, watercolor or pastel.
Light, color, balance, rhythm, the poetry of the human figure.