About the Artist

I retired after a thirty-year career working in international finance at a large, multinational organization.  While I loved having so much time for myself, I clearly needed a new challenge.  Painting had never been on my radar screen, and I had not been exposed to art or artists growing up in rural Louisiana. One day a few years ago, I was walking through the lobby of the local hospital and I was drawn to the beautiful paintings on display. I looked up the artist and was surprised to find that he was from the area nearby, so I contacted him to buy a painting. He was just finishing up teaching an art class when I arrived, and seeing this, suddenly I knew I needed to learn to paint.  

I love working with all of the beautiful colors and feel a strong sense of the healing power of beauty.  In my still life paintings I enjoy celebrating simple moments of escape from the drudgery of everyday life, found often in a hearty meal or a luxurious treat.  I also enjoy painting traditional subject matter using old master techniques because I enjoy learning about art history and feeling a connection with the past.

My portraits are usually of people that I know because I feel emotionally connected to them and their life stories.  Feeling their emotions puts me in touch with my own buried feelings, so that through my art I can free myself of that which keeps me from freedom and joy.   To me, the multiple layers of a painting are a metaphor for the masks that we often wear to hide the deeper layers of ourselves.  I endeavor to look behind the masks into the souls of my subjects and to honor them with empathy and understanding.

Art Education

2015-2017  Master Artist Program of The Compass Atelier, Rockville, MD  

2015 Alyssa Monks workshop

2016 Steven Assael workshop

2016 Cindy Procious workshop

2017 Cindy Procious workshop

2017 -2024 Winter Palace Studio workshops and classes

2018 Portrait Society Conference attendee

2019 Awarded a grant by Montgomery County, MD to participate in Figurative Art Convention and Expo in Williamsburg, VA

2019-22 Tina Garrett Workshops and mentorship group
2020 Roberto Osti Anatomy Workshop Series

Exhibitions

2015 Artists and Makers Studio, resident artists exhibit

2016 Artomatic, Park Potomac, MD

2017-2020 Winter Palace Studio Exhibitions

2018 Young At Art, Alexandria, VA, 3rd place

2019 Honorable Mention, Rockville Art League

2020 Best in Show, Honorable Mention, Rockville Art League