Artist Statement
I absolutely love painting and photography. Fortunately, they are closely related. My better photographs create a desire for me to paint something even better. I am so impressed with the beauty in nature, animals and family that I am never short of reference material when I get time for another painting!
Artist Biography
I have always enjoyed drawing, but it wasn’t until I finished college that I first began drawing with pen and ink to create frame-worthy art. I have had little formal training in art except for a few art classes in college and some drawing and painting classes over the years. I read many “How To…” books before the internet and now I watch a LOT of YouTube tutorials.
I am currently a member of the Central California Art Association, the Sierra Professional Artists, and the Mother Lode Art Association. I have paintings in two galleries at the moment: “The Wild Rose” in Jamestown, CA and “Ranch Revived” in Groveland, CA. I have also sold paintings from the Mistlin Gallery in Modesto and the Groveland Gallery (now closed) in Groveland, although many sales are by word-of-mouth.
Regrettably, most of the drawings and paintings that I have done over the last many years were done as a hobby and given to family and friends as gifts, with no photographic record at all. And unfortunately, many of the photographs that I did take of those works were more for my memories than for the possibility of printing them for resale. Although the quality is not great, hopefully these images (see the Portfolio page) will give you an idea of my interests and a sense of the quality of my work.
Family
My wife Karen is an excellent watercolor painter, which helps greatly as she critiques my work. When we’re traveling, both of us like to visit every art gallery we can. The camera is always ready to collect material for our next work. My oldest son is also a huge help since he is an accomplished software and web site developer. I mention that primarily because he built this web site. Our youngest son, who also makes us very proud, is now a licensed Architect – an artist in his own right. We also have two wonderful daughters-in-law (a teacher and a manager at our local [Gallo] performing arts center), two beautiful grandchildren and two grand-Labradors – all of whom we love very much.