I’m a self-taught mixed-media artist who heard a calling to make art at the age of 55. Before that, I had a career as a writer and editor. Among my jobs was communications manager for The Painting Experience, a nonprofit dedicated to understanding and facilitating process art. I painted for the process only, not concerned with technique or product, for nearly twenty years.
I’m studying technique now, focusing on drawing. It’s been a shock and a delight to discover how much I love to draw. But I’m most pulled toward combining elements — art media, ephemera, language — to shape what inspires me.
For several years, I worked only in art journals, until my beloved pigeons pushed me out of my notebook onto my desktop paper, then onto larger scrap plywood boards, and onto post-it note after post-it note. Pigeons are bossy!
I have five rescued domestic pigeons at home and have participated in the rescue of hundreds of others over three decades. I donate a portion of proceeds (usually 50%) from my work featuring pigeons to rescue organizations, particularly Palomacy Pigeon & Dove Adoptions.
My art also raises money for other causes, and I sell work to cover some of my expenses, but I don’t make a profit; that’s not my goal. Some would call it a hobby. I call it true love.
Medical Center for Birds, Scrap Board Pigeons, Oakley, CA, Ongoing
Artist Within–A Cedars Gallery, San Anselmo, CA, Are We There Yet?, July 12 to August 22, 2024
Wild Heart Gallery, CUTE, WINGS, and MOOD. Animals with Attitude, 2023
Marin County Fair, Juried Fine Art Exhibit, July 2023
Inquiring Mind, Buddhist Semiannual Journal, Scrapyard Buddhas: Black and White Photos, Spring 2005
Fairfax Fa La La Winter Market, December 15, 2023
Fairfax Art Walk, September 29, 2023
Artist Strong Interview, “How to Be an Artist” Series, October 2023
Overall Honorable Mention, Always on Time (Pip), Wild Heart Gallery, WINGS, 2nd Annual International Juried Art Exhibition, 2023
Special Merit Award, Avian Magnetism (Valentino), Wild Heart Gallery, MOOD. Animals with Attitude, 2023
In fourth grade, my drawing was selected as the centerpiece of the school’s California history mural. (Please laugh. The empty space in this area was overwhelming. I’m new at this.)
College of Marin: Drawing Classes (June 2023-present)
The Painting Experience: Process Painting (2001-2021)
Berkeley ASUC Studio: Black & White Photography (2002), Drawing Fundamentals (2015)
U.C. Berkeley School of Law, J.D., 1993
U.C. Berkeley, Bachelor of Arts, 1989