I have rekindled a love for watercolor painting after many years of working as an urban planner in government and nonprofit sectors and am so appreciative of the warm welcome and support that I have received from MIVAL.
I grew up in northern New Jersey outside of NYC in a town that was steeped in its revolutionary war roots, nineteenth century railroad suburb prosperity, and in my youth, had become a modern ‘edge town’ blessed with buildings, street plans and natural landscapes that reflected this history.
Drawn to how these physical features tell a story, I began drawing and painting at an early age, and researching local history. I also developed an interest in handwriting, my own, the handwriting of my family, notably my mother, and the early handwriting and lettering I found in historical documents and artifacts. To date, this fascination with handwriting and calligraphy is evident in my art along with this celebration of place. My condensed list of ‘places of the heart’: Mercer Island, (my home for almost 30 years), Western Massachusetts (especially Lenox and Lee, Mass.), Naples, Florida, Eugene, OR and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Periodically I have studied art, including coursework at Skidmore College (B.A. English and American Studies), and workshops and courses in the Seattle area. I completed a master’s degree in Urban Regional Planning at Cornell University.
Artists that I have looked to for guidance and inspiration are Charles Demuth, Mark Tobey, Cy Twombly, Georgia O’Keeffe, William Merritt Chase and so many others.
