Years ago, my sister gave me a beautiful French easel for Christmas.  I thanked her profusely, but told her I would save it for when the kids were grown. I guess I thought painting was too messy with little people running around doing parkour off the living room furniture. I’ve always, with the exception of my college years, spent time creating something, though. I went through a childhood poetry phase, explored watercolor painting, then dabbled in sketching, calligraphy, cake decorating, and hand-painted furniture, before finally settling into photography, which was a great fit while raising children. 

As my kids began to reach independence, I was going through a transition of my own, feeling the need to do something hands on.  I remembered the easel and pulled it out.  I had always been painting in my head, anyway- thinking about how I would paint a scene, noticing color, shape, light and shadow. Once I began to slide the paint across the canvas, there was no turning back. 

So now I paint.  I find constant inspiration in the struggle to create a painting, a constant push to do better work, to learn more, to attain a new level, then another. 

But beyond the personal drive to improve and create something of beauty, I hope I’m creating in those who see or invest in my work a sense of what I saw or felt in a scene - not simply a rendering, but the capture of a simple moment. 

Thank you for stopping by!
Karen