I started “teaching myself” to paint in oils after graduation in 2009 (I graduated with a BFA, but traditional oil painting was not taught there at the time, so I graduated with a focus on sculpture-metalsmithing). I purchased a pochade box, a few paints, and a couple of books on painting and I was on my way. Although I have yet to take a class on traditional oil painting, I’m very comfortable to say that I have taught myself, since I have had access to many books, videos and wonderful artists around the world who have answered my many questions.

My goal has always been to simply capture the power and joy of pretty things, and to do it in the traditional style of the old masters that inspire me, like Fantin Latour, Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, and Anne Vallayer-Coster.