So, who am I? I guess that is the best place to start for a blog. Over the years I have had a varied path as a student, illustrator, graphic designer, muralist, DJ, freelance artist, teacher and portrait painter. I am a mom of three (four, if you count my husband), a caretaker, a wife and a very visual person. These layers merge and smash together sometimes, crisscrossing over my life. I have always been fascinated by the visual world. My earliest memory is of drawing crooked smiley faces, putting the nose right between the eyes, and my mother telling me to “draw what you see” and gently pointing out that noses are below the level of the eyes. Then and there something clicked in my three-year-old mind, and I have been fascinated with the visual world ever since.
My obsession now is faces. Subtle nuances that set one child apart from another or wrinkles of life in a wise face. I love sunlit hair and bare feet- the mommy in me always comes to the table and, despite all the detail, the graphic designer still lives and tries to bring a well-thought-out plan to every painting. Although I still rely on that first art lesson –“draw what you see”, I now strive to see beyond a likeness to tell a story. Intention is king.
So, now I paint. Because I have to. It is that simple. Other artists will understand. I hope to share here a bit more of my story and how my path is still meandering along a dusty trail with my current obsession with pastels. This blog is called the Power of Pastel because it truly is how I think- how powerful this medium is, and how to control those powers.
Hope you enjoy the stroll….
