Artist Statement
As an artist, I am immersed in a creative environment and I am
inspired by my students’ creativity and willingness to explore any
possibility. My motivation also stems from my love for vibrant
colors and influences from the German Expressionist artist Franz
Marc.
I create every painting with expressive color and texture which
brings life, uniqueness and fun to ordinary objects. I wish to
remind viewers of the simplicity of life. Through this use of
exaggerated light and color, loose and repetitive brush strokes and
increased contrast, an energy and joyful experience is created for
the viewer.
Artist Biography
As a child I grew up in Meadville, a small town in northwest
Pennsylvania. Since I was young I always had a love for art. I
remember my father teaching me how to draw birds in our dining room.
I thought he was the best artist in the world. He made it look so
simple. I continued to draw and tried to advance my skills but
there are only so many skills you can fine tune while drawing
Garfield and Snoopy. When I started junior and senior high school I
enrolled in several different art classes and found that I was
actually talented and could possibly continue to advance in the
visual arts. I enrolled in the University of South Florida in Tampa
and pursued my love of art by majoring in Fine Arts with a
concentration in computer imaging. Upon graduating with my
undergraduate degree I moved to Syracuse, New York and started
working as a graphic artist. I then enrolled in the Masters program
at Syracuse, University for Art Education and graduated with a MS in
Art Education and certification in visual art K-12. As a student
teacher I fell in love with teaching and at that point realized
being in the classroom inspiring students was where I needed to be.
I relocated to North Carolina for many reasons; jobs, weather, and
opportunities. I started teaching at Ligon Middle School for half a
year and moved to Washington Elementary where I taught Art for 3
years. A position at Wakefield High School opened and I was excited
to be offered the job. After starting at Wakefield I was re-inspired
to paint. I developed my own style and subject matter and decided to
start entering my paintings into juried exhibitions. I also became
interested in the Raleigh Street Painting Festival and won seven
best in show awards. I was honored to be the guest artist in 2007.
In the summer of 2007 I submitted my work to Local Color Gallery and
I was pleased to be given the honor of becoming a member.
