In high school I was told I had a talent for drawing when I won first place in my school’s art contest. I drew a white horse running through a field. That same year I was asked by my school to teach drawing in art class. For the next 15 years I didn’t draw anything. I did not go to art school and I’ve never had a lesson. When I turned 31 I started painting and immediately began getting portrait commissions. I was very reluctant to pursue art as a career because of my lack of formal training but I decided to go for it anyway. I did not dream that I would end up being a full time artist.
I learned how to paint by studying the work of the old masters like Rembrandt, Velazquez, Sargent , Mancini and Caravaggio. I am also very inspired by the work of tonalist painters and pictorialist photographers of the 19th and early 20th century. I paint with airbrush acrylics and oils. I have experimented with many styles over the years such as photorealism, pointillism, pop art and more.
Early on in my career I painted many Hollywood icons. After moving to the northwest, I rekindled my love for nature and American history. I am fascinated with peoples stories. I did not grow up with a tv but I was surrounded with history books and biographies of notable historical figures. My work is now focused on great Americans and their life stories. I also love painting animals and view each as an individual portrait with their own story. I especially love horses and have been around them my whole life. I camp with wild horses every year.
The following quote is my daily motto.
"Nothing is good but truth. People ought to paint what they know and love. I come from a village in Lorraine. I mean, first of all, to paint the peasants and landscapes of my home exactly as they are." Bastien Lepage
I have worked with clients such as Vin Diesel, Dr. Dre, Saint Lauren in Paris, Whitney Houston, Mikhail Gorbachev, Bernie Ecclestone (owner of Formula One Racing), Larry Hagman, Drew Barrymore, Markus Persson (creator of Minecraft), Ruby Bridges (painted by Norman Rockwell), Donna Summer, Bruce Makowsky, Kathy Van Zeeland, BAM Luxury Development, International House Hotel and many others.