Florida Artists Group

Artists Bio:

I received my BFA at Louisiana State University in 1977. At LSU, I began my focus with traditional figurative drawing and painting. I then graduated into studying the emotional effects of expressionism using bold and bright colors to explore shapes and boundaries. The works of the Impressionists would later play a major role in the development of my style.

Artist Statement:

I find myself reaching back to simpler times for artistic inspiration and ancestral curiosity. As inspiration for my paintings I began collecting vintage black and white photography, dating from the 1890's to the 1950's. To be part of my collection a photo needs to have a soulful appeal -compelling, yet, timeless in its depiction of life. It is important that the faces and candid moments frozen in time have a strong universal familiarity. No matter how interesting and different the clothes, hairstyles, architecture, apparent lifestyles, transportation and interior design appear -there must be this underlying familiarity.

I often find color too enticing to the eye, overriding all my sensibilities.  When color is eliminated great images and natural compositions jump out more easily. The black and whiteness of the photos frees me to freely consider the element of color.

Although my collection is a collection of total strangers, by the time the painting is finished I feel as if I know this person or group of people intimately. Perhaps it is my sensitivity or intuition as an artist or maybe my many years as a teacher that helps reveal this understanding about my nameless subjects.  Perhaps the photo itself exudes something heartwarming. Whatever the reason, the photos and paintings inspired there from have become one of my dearest treasures.

Current Employment:

I teach full-time as an Elementary Art Instructor in the Collier County School District. Working with the little ones is both awakening and hugely rewarding. Peter Kahn, Wolf Kahn’s older brother and past Art Professor of mine, once told me, “work with the little ones…it will keep your work fresh.” I did. It does.

Exhibitions:

American Women Artists, Addison Art Gallery, Orleans, Massachusetts
Women Painters of the Southeast, Magnolia Gallery, Greensboro, Georgia
International Society of Acrylic Painters Exhibition, Atrium Gallery, Paso Robles, California
All Florida Spring Juried Exhibition, The Art Center, St. Petersburg
Two-Person exhibition, Two Artists, Norris Center Gallery, Naples, Florida
Teachers Create, Von Liebig Art Center, Naples, Florida
Art 99, Edison Community College, Rauschenberg Gallery, Ft. Myers, Florida
Solo Exhibit State Supreme Court Gallery, Florida State Capitol, Tallahassee, Florida
Selby Gallery of the Ringling College of Art and Design

Her work has been exhibited in many state and local venues in and around Sarasota, Florida and is included in private collections throughout North America.

 

Memberships:

Collier County Art Teachers Association 1999-present (Past President)
International Society of Acrylic Painters, accepted 2012
FLAG, accepted 2000-present

Publications:

Saw Palm Florida Literature and Art, 2012
Gow Collection, CD, Naples Museum of Art, 2001

Education:

Academy of Art University - San Francisco, CA, USA
 
ArtStudy/Giverny, Giverny, France July 1998
 
M.Ed: Education, 1985
University of Florida - Gainesville, FL, USA
 
B.F.A: Drawing and Painting, 1977
Louisiana State University - Baton Rouge, LA, USA