About
I am a contemporary artist based in Boulder, Colorado, working both nationally and internationally through the mediums of abstraction, narrative, and nature. I received my MFA in Painting and Drawing from the University of Wisconsin, where I focused on abstract painting. I grew up on the East Coast, spending my early life in cities on the ocean. Later, I moved west to reside on the prairie, which is my current home. These environments continue to shape my artistic vision. I have fallen in love with the light and splendor of Northern New Mexico, spending much of my time in Taos, where the beauty and colors of the landscape have a profound influence on my work. I taught studio art at Front Range Community College for many years. I now serve as a board member and Exhibition Committee Lead for the Colorado Women’s Art Museum. I am delighted to be a Boulder Open Studio Artist. I am proud to have my art selected in the permanent collection of the Kirkland Art Museum, which is now a part of the Denver Art Museum in Denver. And honored to have my artwork on display in Ortigia, Sicily.
Process
My artistic process is intuitive and rooted in memory, place, and personal experience. Process is at the heart of my work, and I select materials based on the concepts I want to express. Abstract painting remains central to my practice, with large, immersive canvases that become environments of color and emotion. My paintings explore memory and discovery through gesture, mark-making, and layering. I also frequently return to drawing as a practice because of its immediacy and the “magical change” that happens on paper. I don’t believe an artist has to remain in one style; instead, I let each concept determine the media I use. Sometimes a new material or even a found object sparks a fresh direction, pushing my work into unexpected territory.
Influences
My artistic influences are as varied as my process. I admire Gerhard Richter’s ability to move seamlessly between abstraction and realism, and I am inspired by Grace Hartigan and Joan Mitchell, whose bold colors and gestural marks seem to swim across the canvas. Wassily Kandinsky’s playful abstractions influence my works on paper, while Jean-Michel Basquiat’s raw, emotional paintings motivate me to tell personal stories through symbolic and expressive visual language. These artists, along with my own evolving environments and experiences, continue to shape my work and keep me growing as an artist.