My Story

Although I've been a professional artist and designer for years, I only have a few months of formal training and am mostly self taught, so I am inspired by the valued contributions of American folk artists. Often untrained but remarkably insightful, working in makeshift studios with limited materials, their art portrayed the cultural richness of life in rural America. I carried on this time-honored tradition with my first foray into the fine art world.

​

In 2010, I created my first kinetic art piece, “Man as Machine.”  It debuted in 2011 at the Onishi Gallery in New York City.  The group exhibition, entitled “Among the Serious and Playful Things,” was composed of selected artists from the US, France, Japan and Italy.  This piece is on permanent display at the Museum of Mechanical Art and Design in Stratford Upon Avon, England, where it is being shown along side work from the most notable artists in the field.  I showed kinetic folk art works regionally up to 2015, then commercial obligations required me to put art creation on hiatus. 

With complications showing kinetic art, along with trends towards more modern, abstract styles, I reevaluated the type of work I would pursue when I began new creations.  I wanted to maintain Northwest character through natural materials and the color palette, and have the new work be, to some degree, reminiscent of my earlier efforts.  

Early in 2018, I began a new body of work focusing on wood assemblages, sculptures and totems.  The new pieces express a juxtaposition between muted background tones and bright central colors.  I use salvaged Northwest softwoods, emphasizing the natural character found in the grain of the wood.  The muted wood tones compliment our moody weather and the changing colors of the mountains and sea.  The tribal nature of some of the pieces pays homage to native Salish art forms. Symbology presented in some of the pieces adds a mystery to the meaning behind the work.  Some of that mystery can be uncovered through close examination, while some is left up to the imagination of the observer.

​

To see commercial retail decor portfolio go to:  www.RetailArtandDecor.com

​

Follow me on Facebook