I am a full-time painter and relocated from California to Orlando in late 2020. It was like coming home. Orlando is a wonderful place to land after living on the west coast for 14 years. I was born and raised in rural Indiana on a small farm due east of Indianapolis on the Ohio border and was the youngest of five children. We had cattle, horses, a pig, and the occasional goat. My dad raised award-winning English Setters and we always had a few strays who came to live with us—between the barn cats, the dogs, and all of the livestock, I was a pretty happy kid. I became interested in making things as a young girl watching my brothers, Dad and Mom. The boys and Dad would make very useful things, and my Mom made everything beautiful. They were ingenious problem solvers. I was challenged at a young age to "figure things out" and supported in my efforts to develop my own understanding. I figured out that I could draw when I was little, too—but I thought everyone could do that because most everyone in my family could! Now, I still work in a variety of materials, but mainly oil and acrylic. I remain that little farm girl who was mesmerized by life. To me, people are a constant source of wonderment, and I love to translate their stories to canvas. Knowing that stories a picture can tell are unique with every viewer, I strive for meaning in my work, to move people. I want the images I create to tell the stories they are meant to share. Painting and translating life onto a canvas is one of the means of communication I feel the most comfortable with; art is universal, it has the power to pull us together for honest discussion and meaningful connection.
