MY STORY

I was born and raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I enjoyed a lively childhood with loving parents and three younger brothers. Every year my family would explore the interesting little hamlets found along the coast. I came to be strongly bonded to the Atlantic and love its colour and natural beauty. I now live in Maitland, Nova Scotia, with my two young children, dogs, gardens, and several aquariums.

My innate desire to be creative has attracted me to many hobbies, such as sewing, knitting, cross-stitching, rug hooking, quilting, wood working, sign making, etc. I have a special love for architecture and a background in drafting. After turning thirty-two I felt myself drawn to painting.
Inspired by a great artist and old friend, Gordon Roache, I started with acrylics. Unfortunately, I became frustrated with their quick drying and my own awkwardness in mixing colours.

Then one Saturday in October 1989 I took an afternoon workshop given by Joy Laking, a wonderfully encouraging person and artist. Something clicked for me that day and I’ve had a great time playing with watercolours ever since. Other than recreational classes, I have had no formal fine art training. My style is photo realism and all my paintings are vividly coloured and finely detailed. They are developed from on-site photos, sketches, and a collection of objects. I never use white or black paint in my work. White areas in my paintings are untouched paper and what you see as black comes from many washes of many colours.

I often include within my paintings special representations of my family and home life, such as the names of my two children, Barry and Emily, the children riding their bikes, our two dogs, my parents, brothers, car, significant dates, symbols, etc. Most of my paintings have taken forty to sixty hours to complete. Some, like Teapots Galore, have taken as many as one hundred and fifty hours. The only way I know when my painting is finished is by watching and listening to the painting. The painting itself tells me when it is finished.

My paintings are realistic reflections of the colours and moods of nature. The portraits and commissions I paint are striking in their likeness and liveliness. My paintings and reproductions are in both private and corporate collections. My reproductions are found in fine shops throughout the Maritimes, Ontario, and New England.

Though painting is an essential part of my life, I feel my greatest works of art are my two children.