My aim is to capture the essence of a scene, object, or figure in a way that extends it beyond its role in the modern world. Life usually happens too fast for us to stop and reflect on what surrounds us. I am seeking to slow down the pace and evoke a viewer’s internal and personal response to the subject by enhancing it through color relations, shapes, light, contrast, and abstraction.

I want the paint to be a vibrating, animate force in itself as its consistency, movement, and texture interact with the subject to evoke feeling. Each canvas is an area of exploration as I seek to bend the lines and restrictions of form and space to create an alternate visual reality.

I am particularly drawn to the female figure and its placement near or in nature. My goal is to eventually preserve the loose quality of a 30-minute sketch, while manifesting all the breadth and texture of a finished painting.

I grew up with artist parents in Davis, California, where my father was an art professor at the University. At home, I was surrounded early on by the paintings and sculptures of many well-known Northern California artists who have all influenced my work.

I obtained my Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz and have studied figurative drawing and painting for several years with Claire Thorson, Art Department Chair and professor at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California. I have also studied painting techniques for many years with artist Roland Petersen, my father and mentor.