In the Studio
Stay tuned! This page will soon be transformed to get a better look at my process and what I’m up to in the studio. My work is always evolving and this will give you a behind the scenes look at my thoughts on current pieces in development.
The Process
The Evolution
2024 has been a very exciting year so far! The Seen was accepted into a highly competitive national show at the Masur Art Museum in Monroe, LA. Another painting, The Depths, (featured above) was awarded second place by The National Art League in New York for their 93rd Annual Juried Competition.
My art prints are now available through my online store. I’ve been working non-stop to photograph my work and get images to my amazing printer. The artwork is printed as giclée archival prints on matte paper.
It continues to be such a special experience to see how my work connects with different people on a personal level. The ongoing struggle for balance in my life as a person in the sandwich generation, with twins and parents that are getting older, feeds into the work. External events, especially those politically which will affect my daughters’ lives in the future also continues to be an influence. I continue to learn to embrace and develop my individual voice. I plan to add some in progress videos to this website shortly as I get many questions about how I develop my paintings.
The Shows
After I had a body of new work in 2022, I started applying for solo shows in Idaho Falls. I was selected for two separate solo shows so I had a lot of framing to do! In January to March 2023, I had a show at the Willard Arts Center for the Idaho Falls Arts Council in the Hall Gallery. In August 2023, I exhibited my work at The Art Museum of Eastern Idaho.
I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect as a reception here, my work can be very intense and is very unlike the landscape and animal imagery usually on display. I was really happy with the response and conversations about the work. I know the paintings were challenging for some people, but overall viewers were very curious and engaged. One viewer said, “it made me feel things, but that’s ok.” I’ll never forget that comment.
The Work
I spent the next few years painting every day. I graduated with a degree in drawing, but I needed the intensity of color during this time. New art tools like Posca paint markers and high flow acrylics became available and helped me find my voice on canvas. In previous work I had been working with abstracted bone forms and it was interesting to see how these would be reimagined in color.
The Catalyst
Back in the fall of 2019, I took a watercolor workshop with Gloria Miller-Allen and during those classes I was instantly inspired to start doing my art again. I had been doing the family thing, raising twins, but needed to find a way to get art back into my life regularly. Once the pandemic hit, I squeezed any time I could into painting which was tricky. I was homeschooling my girls and cooking most of our food from scratch due to severe food allergies in our household. I’m so thankful I had my artwork at this time – it was one thing that kept me going.