My Inspiration In the studio life pulses, creativity grabs hold, and time falls away. It is just me and the pure pigments ofthe soft pastels. Vibrant and alive like the wild. My inspiration comes from all around us. All of what Ihave seen, explored, and become. My art is built upon a lifetime of experiences, adventures, observationsand feelings. Each mark I make carries all my heart and soul. It carries the energy and expression thatsurrounds and manifests in all things. Waking up to howler monkeys singing through the jungle canopy ofCosta Rica. Swimming with sea turtles in the turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Watching a black bearfeast on berries while enjoying my morning coffee. From a simple walk in the forest to the feeling of sandbetween my toes on a sun-soaked beach. I watched fish swim through a creek in the deserts of DeathValley. I've seen the night sky ignite with the light of a thousand galaxies in Joshua Tree. Stood in awe ofthe giant sequoia trees, basked in the glory of the red rocks and fell in love with the majestic bison on theplains of Yellowstone. Each experience deepening the connection I have with nature, myself, and my art.Adding purpose to the mark I make, more richness to the color I choose and more joy to what I create.When you truly walk this Earth it becomes you. It’s a beautiful gift I get to take with me to the studio, but the true gift is the joy I get to share with you. My Process It all starts with the surface. I use a heavy sanded pastel paper designed to grip and hold the soft pastel.The paper comes on a giant roll, as big as me (now I know what you're thinking. I may be verticallychallenged but still. A roll as tall as me!) My framer (I use the world’s greatest) cuts the paper to size, thenhot presses it to an archival board. This has three main advantages, first it gives me a very firm surface towork on. Second, it prevents the paper from warping, wrinkling and bending over time, and finally it addsstability and structural support for framing these large works under glass. Now the fun begins. I start by laying in big blocks of color. Dark to light, warm to cool, till the whole paperis covered. I work the background first then the subject, putting most of my attention on the eyes.Capturing the soul is the most important part. I want to connect right away. Then comes my favorite part- adding detail with tiny strokes of color. Layer upon layer I build up thecolors, mixing warm and cool, light and dark til the painting comes to life. When you stand back theycreate the larger shapes and forms of the subject. Up close vibrant strokes sing and dance across thesurface. Each complements the other, making the painting fascinating from any viewpoint. Once the painting is complete, it is sprayed with a non-toxic, all-natural casein-based recipe used byDegas. It’s the only formula I have found to keep my colors exactly as I painted them. Several layers of alight mist are applied over the course of an hour or so, giving proper time for each layer to completely dry before applying the next. After several layers of fixative the pastel is set and ready to be framed. Back to the frame shop it goes to be finished in a soft gold frame. A spacer is placed between the painting and the anti-reflective art glass to preserve all the texture and archival qualities of the soft pastel medium. Thanks to the pure pigments of the pastels each work of art will be forever as vibrant as the day it was brought home. Galleries and ShowsSOUTHEASTERN WILDLIFE EXPO (SEWE) — CHARLESTON, SC — FEB, 2017, 2018, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025WHITESIDE ART GALLERY – CASHIERS, NC – JUNE, 2021 – CURRENTLUCY CLARK GALLERY – BREVARD, NC – FEB, 2021 – CURRENT 4 CORNERS GALLERY AT THE TUCSON DESERT ART MUSEUM — TUCSON, AZ — NOV — Dec 2018DANVILLE ART GALLERY — DANVILLE, CA — JAN — FEB, 2018PANDO FINE ART - PARK CITY, UT – FEB, 2017 – JUNE, 2020SEWE — LIVE PAINTING AND AUCTION — CHARLESTON, SC — FEB, 20174 CORNERS GALLERY AT THE TUCSON DESERT ART MUSEUM — TUCSON, AZ — NOV — DEC, 2016GALLERY 43 — ROSWELL, GA — NOV, 2016 - MAR, 2017GALLERY AT FLAT ROCK — FLAT ROCK, NC — JULY — SEPT, 2016ART SPARK — LIVE PAINTING AND AUCTION— BREVARD, NC — AUGUST, 2016RED WOLF GALLERY — BREVARD, NC — MAY, 2016 — JAN, 2021SOLO EXHIBIT — 44 MAIN GALLERY — BREVARD, NC — APRIL - MAY, 2016PIGMENTS OF THE IMAGINATION — TC ARTS — BREVARD, NC — MARCH — APRIL, 2016 Publications and AccoladesFINE ART CONNOISSEUR — JAN/FEB, 2017, 2018, 2022PASTEL SOCIETY of AMERICA — JURIED MEMBER,THE LAUREL OF ASHEVILLE — OCT, 2018 - APRIL, 2021 - OCT, 2021SEWE ART BOOK — 2017, 2018WESTERN ART COLLECTOR — FEB, 2017SOUTHWEST ART — JAN, 2017THE LAUREL OF ASHEVILLE — COVER ARTIST — OCTOBER, 2016BOLD LIFE — MAR, 2016 - JULY 2016 - AUG, 2016 - APRIL, 2022B.F.A — SAVANNAH COLLEGE of ART and DESIGN — 2006