Artist Highlight

My sunlit paintings use colors, values, and textures to capture the beauty of locations around the world and tell stories of human connection.

I am inspired by scenes near my home in Tampa Bay as well as on my vacations in Europe and elsewhere.  My eye is first captured by shapes: an interesting building, a jagged skyline, interwoven tree branches, or the profile of a group of people. I take hundreds of photos, looking to capture the moment and angle that creates an interesting abstract composition as well as a compelling narrative.  Then back in the studio I play with the elements of several photos to balance form and value in my reference image. When I start painting, I work with layers of acrylic or oil paint, using color and brushstrokes to realize my vision of beauty, relaxation, and connection.

I like to include people in my paintings because their stories bring the scene to life. I arrange the figures so that their interaction suggests a narrative that allows for a certain ambiguity. We wonder "Who are they? What are they doing? What will happen next?"

Even though I work with references studies, I don’t know how the final painting will look until I complete it. As the painting develops the structure of the original design remains, but each brushstroke is a reaction to how the painting looks in that moment. Thus, my paintings become a tapestry of statements and revisions, a combination of my original inspiration and the moment-by-moment activity of seeing and creating.