Biography

I started my artistic journey in my Miami magnet middle school, where I studied photography for three years. In this class we also explored still life drawing, and I discovered that I had a talent for it. While I loved the hands-on process of developing and printing from 35mm film, once I reached high school I started to draw a lot more. My art took a bit of a hiatus in college as I focused on my biology major at UCF (always a science nerd at heart!), and then I moved to New Orleans.

The quirkiness of living in New Orleans was all it took to bring back my creative side out of hiding! I invested in a great digital camera and got back into photography for many years, but, more importantly, I started taking drawing and painting classes. While my skills were improving, I was still having difficulty pinning down a distinctive style. I felt I needed to explore my own mind (and the world) more, so I applied for and was accepted to an art school in Barcelona. I spent 2017 in Spain studying at an international art school called Metàfora. Metàfora really taught me to examine the why more than the how, and it offered me a safe haven to try new things. I came out of there with more of a sense of self, and have since refined my painting styles and personal techniques even more.

After studying in Barcelona, I lived a bit of a nomadic life, hopping from Berlin, Germany to Key West, Florida to Seattle, Washington, and now back to New Orleans. These days I focus on watercolors and acrylics, but I’m still always open to new territory and different mediums!

Statement

My work lately has had a few common themes, the main one being the overall form of the subject. I find it fascinating that living creatures can twist and contort themselves into such unique shapes, and the fact that these shapes sometimes last a mere fraction of a second is even more interesting to me. I’ve been having fun painting highly detailed animal subjects, but with a very unassuming background so that the viewer’s eye notices the shapes more than anything. My biology background comes through by showcasing my love of animals, and my love of life comes through with my use of bright colors.