Biography

I am a Saskatoon-based Canadian artist and recently-retired art educator.  Though I began life as a high school Phys. Ed. teacher, I always loved to draw and was an artist at heart.  After taking a community art class and completing my first painting at 40, I returned to the University of Saskatchewan in 2005 and completed my B.F.A. with Great Distinction. Since then, I have enriched my practice through self-directed workshops with local and international artists, artist mentorships, international retreats and residencies and solo and group exhibitions across Canada and the U.S.   I am grateful to have received many awards for my work, to travel internationally for various art opportunities and to have been named “A Saskatchewan Artist to Watch” in 2019.  My work is represented by galleries in Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan and my paintings are part of private, public and corporate collections across Canada and around the world.  But I am especially grateful that I get to pursue my life’s passion and create art every day.

Expressive mark-making, colour, texture and light all play a powerful role in my art.  I favour oil for its buttery texture and juicy strokes and encaustic for its unpredictable and mysterious nature. Using a layered approach, I add further richness, history and content to my work using oil sticks, charcoal, pastels, inks, tar, shellac and metallic leaf.  In regards to encaustic, while the act of painting with molten wax and an open flame is already a wondrous experience in and of itself, its luminous and tactile nature is most intriguing. Letting go and allowing encaustic to serendipitously paint itself during the fusing process is one of my most exciting studio moments as is excavating into previous layers in order to reveal what lies below. My process-driven, multi-layered, go-with-the-flow approach allows me to capture the spirit, atmosphere and energy of my subject and every day I learn something new about this seductive and versatile medium.

Gathering imagery and experiencing my subjects close-up and personal has become a life-giving part of my process, beneficial for mind, body and soul.  My work evolves from many hours spent mainly in Canada’s harshly beautiful environment: hiking, paddling, skiing, walking, observing, absorbing and just being.  During these outdoor pursuits, I am overwhelmed by the beauty that surrounds me, my senses are filled and when I return to my home studio, I am ravenous to paint.  This is where I disappear, into the quiet, and dig deep into the soul of the landscape or the life forms I have experienced first-hand.  This is where I translate the emotions from my experiences, creating  joy, hope and light for myself and others.

“I am seeking.  I am striving.  I am in it with all my heart.” 
- Vincent Van Gogh