Painting, for me, is a quest for an image that is not just about reality but something that lies between what I see and an abstracted idea. The journey from the idea to the completed painting can be quick or take several years to come to fruition. Both abstract and representational ideas appear in my work with nature, light, and color a constant inspiration for me. Much of nature is inspired by the landscape in New Zealand and in Africa along with the rural south.
Most of my paintings are oil on canvas as I enjoy the properties of oil paint and the ways in which one can manipulate it so that it is a thing into itself. I also work with watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil.
I grew up in Alabama, graduated from Auburn University, before I moved to Chicago. The School of the Art Institute of Chicago was where I received my BFA and MFA. I taught in the School of the Art Institute and Wright College. During the time I called Chicago my home, I lived for 2 years in Nigeria, then 8 years in New Zealand, 1 year in Switzerland. All those places influenced the ideas in my work.
Sonia Zaks in Chicago represented me and gave me yearly shows, as did Oedipus Rex in Auckland, New Zealand. I was also represented by Katherine Markel in New York. My work is collected nationally and internationally in New Zealand and Australia and Europe.
A decade ago, I left Chicago to move to Carrboro, North Carolina to be close to my daughter and her family with my two grandchildren. In 2024 I joined the Orange County Artists Guild and will participate in the Open Studio Tour.
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