In grade 5, I remember drawing caricatures of the Beatles on the blackboard at recess and the kids were impressed. Then I started making bookmarks with voluptuous cartoon women drawn on them and I gave them away to the boys.

I studied Art History and there are so many. To name a few starting with the earliest, I am fascinated by cave art with its primitive scrawlings. Then the Byzantine Era with Giotto’s Madonna and Child. I like the flat, illustrative look of this era. Da Vinci was the greatest artist of the Renaissance in my opinion. Contemporary artists that inspire me are Van Gogh…the greatest colourist, Matisse, a close second, and little known, Larry Rivers who balanced skillful rendering with courageous abstraction.

Abstract Expressionism (which is different from purely Abstract Art) in that there is usually some reference to recognizable form, albeit a loose reference. The objects in the painting translate themselves to the viewer as the experience of things rather than the things themselves. The sometimes, intense use of colour is meant to stir up the brash, unpredictable dreamer in all of us.

After I decided to paint seriously and full-time, I had a show of which four people came to. As I was feeling defeated, I got a call from one of the four attendees saying that her friends would love my work. She brought them over and they bought a large painting of trees for $1900. I was blown away and it gave me renewed courage to carry on.

I work on one piece at a time and I like to work in mini-series in order to explore multiple aspects of a basic direction. I begin each painting with a black gesso base upon which I add white shapes and scraped lines. All life (creativity) is born out of darkness and the white-black combo represents Yin-Yang balance. I rarely have a plan for the painting. Spontaneous expression creates serendipitous shapes as layers of paint are applied in random order. My skills and training do provide direction with the dramatic effects.

I prepare the canvas with spontaneous shapes. I stare at it for some time then the ideas just flow. I get up and I start.

I live in the Vancouver area, BC,Canada with my partner. I paint full time and and am committed to success.