About
If you have any questions e-mail me from the guest book. THIS PART IS ABOUT ME Addicted to art. Lusting for beauty. All about art, all the time. I was born an artist. My earliest memories are of color and shapes. I have drawn and painted all my life. My first teachers were the strong creative women in my family. My mother, grandmother and aunts painted, sewed, designed hats and did crafts. I still think about them when I do a paint technique that is influenced by sewing. I have had some wonderful art teachers in formal and informal training. To list just a few, Marie Hull from Jackson, Mississippi; Tory Hughes from New Mexico; Mary Strasser, New Orleans; Joe Barth, New Orleans. I am obsessed with art. Over the years when I needed information I searched it out. I visit galleries and museums. I devour the pictures in art books. I talk to other artists. I take classes. Inspiration is everywhere. Like taking a sunbath, I soak it up. There is so much information, " an embarrassment of riches". I am grateful to the master painters who have left their marks for us to enjoy and study. So, I have always painted. I doodle obsessively. I do art in my sleep (this is true, not a joke). The other morning I woke up saying, "Cadimium red dark wash over burnt umber". I often paint in my head to amuse myself. Designing and laying in color. Visualizing images. I have and continue to do a lot of experimentation. I have to see, what will happen if I try this new technique. I began working with photoshop in 2002. I did not really need another obsession, but I could not help myself. I experimented and read books. Photoshop has taught me much about image making. The act of doing it reconstructs my approach to techniques and layout. Gratitudes to the creators of Photoshop. There is a variety in my work. Sometimes people comment on this. They seem to think that I should paint the same thing over and over. But, I am easily bored and want to see something new. There are themes and colors and techniques that have reoccured over the decades. I may be looking at old work and realize, "I was doing this in the eighties". Themes evolve and the scope widens. I invent and then polish techniques. Lately I have been figure painting with Shawyuh Karen Wang as the model. In the past I have painted and drawn many figures. I like to do the female form as a way to express my individual feminity and the universal principle of life generation. I am interested in expressing the Goddess that lives in all of us. I give to this spiritual intuition concrete form. I hope that this will enlighten me as I work and elevate you as you view the art. I have been inventing the "jewel" technique over several decades. It continues to evolve and give me the pleasure of seeing something new and beautiful. My inspirations come from natural things that shine and shimmer. Opals, abalone, amber, insect wings and fish scales. I put down many layers of paint. Golden acrylic paints makes some wonderful irridescent and interference paints. On top are clear gels so that you can look into the "jewel". I have a spiritual bond that inspires my art making. Having experienced spiritual states, I try to make paintings to remind us of spirit. No dogma, just the experience of spirit. I do not paint noir. I am aware of the dark side but I want to spread beauty and joy. I want to feel happy when I paint. To hell with the dark stuff. I prefer denial. My work has been exhibited by the New Orleans Museum of Art, the Contemporary Arts Center and many fine galleries nationwide I live in New Orleans and in Washington Parish. New Orleans provides continual inspiration. A fabulous rich culture, music, lots of artists, and gardens. This city is a banquet for the soul. My studio camp in Washington Parish, surrounded by Louisiana jungle, gives me the nature connection that I need to maintain joy. I am blessed with a loving, supportive family and friends. Thanks y'all. Currently you may see my work in Lousiana at these fabulous places: AVENUE ART, on Harrison in Lakeview, New Orleans, 504-483-8901 STERLING GALLERY, 308 Royal Street, French Quarter, New Orleans, 504-523-3747