About Me

My passion for painting was inspired by an art appreciation class in college many years ago.

Santa Maria, California 1987

So I signed up for an Art Class

Even though my major was business, I started taking more art classes. Drawing items up close with shadow and light was interesting, but once paint came into the picture, I was hooked. I bought canvas and paint and set up my own "Pollock" studio in the backyard - throwing and dripping paint.

Life Happens

Jobs, kids, moving was a priority. But I painted whenever I had the time, took art classes where ever we lived, and participated in exhibitions.

This exhibition with my "Study of Blue" in Germany and the face painting for kids was fun for the whole family.

Philadelphia Art Class

One of my favorite Classes was at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia

The teacher encouraged us to experiment with different mediums and styles. It was a great "think outside the box" dynamic.

How fitting for an Art Day

While going out to lunch at the Marathon Grill, they were setting up for the Art Avenue Festival on Broad Street.

It was such a cool atmosphere. It felt vibrant and busy.

And other funny City Problems

Broad Street was closed for a while for a photo shoot... many cars were honking their horns (applause or annoyance?).

Traffic chaos set in when a huge Limo couldn't make it around the corner. It took a lot of back and forth - and finally the police - for the driver to realize he can't make it into the side street.

It was a great day. I hung out with inspiring people, the city was full of action and the weather was perfect.

A truly challenging Project

Research in the Abstract

This exhibition paired artists with research scientists from the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. I was assigned to the Alzheimer Study. Not only was it challenging because I usually create from within and not on assignment, but I also had to learn the scientific part of the study. It was very sobering and sad when I was researching actual cases.

This is Phase 1 - a healthy brain (the brain a gazillion times magnified)

Second Phase - This is what the Study is about

A green slimy plaque (amyloid beta) attaches to the blood vessels. It's a common hallmark of Alzheimer's.

At this point the researchers want to find out if it can be stopped or if they may even get rid of the amyloid beta!

(They are using mice for this research).

The Third Phase - Point of no Return

Once the amyloid beta (green slime) has taken over, the GLUT1 enzymes (shown as silver nails in the previous stages) are gone and the Astrocytes (blue) cannot do its job anymore, it's irreversible. The brain dies a slow death, impacting all functions of memory and everyday life.

Venturing Out

Figure Drawing - Nude Act

Even though I love paint, I like to challenge myself with drawing. When I went to this class in Yardley, PA, I didn't know what to expect.

At first everyone was chatting and the naked model posed by suggestions of some artists. Once we started drawing - some were painting - it was eerily silent. Everyone was rapt in their own creation.

After about an hour people started walking around looking at other drawings. As did I, and everyone's drawing/painting was completely different. You could tell it was a naked woman, but everyone created it in their own style from their own perspective.

Art is in the eye of the beholder, indeed.

Photography

Another great outlet for creativity is photography. It feels good to capture a great moment on camera. Reality is sometimes too amazing on its own and should be kept that way. As in this case:

I contemplated painting my sunrise photo for the Book "The New River Valley Through an Artist's Eye", but decided to show it as is - untouched.

It's nature's surreal painting evolving in the sky - no artist interpretation needed.

2019 New River Art Biennial Exhibition at the Moss Arts Center, Virginia Tech

I was very excited that my "Study of Flowers #6" was selected for this exhibition.

30-some years later...

Still hooked on Art.