VISION / ARTIST'S STATEMENT

In September 2004, I got married and moved out of state...
...New husband, new name, new surroundings. It's been an exciting time of change, and I'm looking forward with a renewed sense of creative energy.

While I've been doing free-lance work for about 4 years, I'm now able to make it a full-time pursuit. Some recent projects have been curriculum illustration (Johns Hopkins University/Smithsonian Press), editorial illustration, and I've even gotten to do some landscape painting.

I graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology (BFA Illustration) in May 2003. A fine art major for my first two years of college, I've had extensive training in traditional drawing, oil painting and printmaking, and really enjoy those media. Recently I've also become very interested in how the computer can be used as a tool in both painting and printmaking, and I've used collage (both digital and "by-hand") in my work. I've also started to combine many media and techniques, continuing to explore line, depth, shape and texture.

Fine art foundational training has also exposed me to many of the conceptual and cultural implications of visual art. I'm eager to see how God can redeem these areas of art and culture for His glory. Transferring from a fine art to an illustration major was a big switch, but one that I really enjoy since I find satisfaction in creating work to solve specific problems for specific clients.

The subject matter that interests me most is usually focused on people, especially editorial work around current social and political issues. Caricature, with its focus on the nuances of feature and expression, is always captivating. I'm also very interested in how God's redemptive plan intersects with human events. I seek to make images that are compelling and true: beautiful but not saccharine, both gutsy and flavorful.