The Midwest has always been my canvas. Growing up in central Iowa, I spent countless hours exploring the riverbanks and woodlands, where I first discovered the quiet drama of sunlight shifting through the trees. Those early days instilled in me a lasting fascination with the way light and shadow transform an ordinary scene into something extraordinary.
Today, that same curiosity carries me into the rugged landscapes along the Iowa River each morning, sketchbook in hand. These familiar places continue to surprise me, offering endless variations of color, atmosphere, and form. My goal is simple yet challenging: to take everyday landscapes and reveal their hidden drama, their quiet poetry, and their enduring beauty.
I work primarily in pastels and oils, drawn to the way each medium allows me to capture mood and texture in different ways. Most of my finished pieces begin with plein air studies and reference photographs, but the heart of each painting lies in the memory of being there—in the crisp air, the shifting light, the stillness of nature.
As a Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America and a Master Circle Member of the International Association of Pastel Societies, I remain dedicated to pushing my work further while also sharing what I’ve learned through workshops. For me, painting is both a way of preserving the landscapes I love and an invitation for others to see the extraordinary in the everyday.
Today, that same curiosity carries me into the rugged landscapes along the Iowa River each morning, sketchbook in hand. These familiar places continue to surprise me, offering endless variations of color, atmosphere, and form. My goal is simple yet challenging: to take everyday landscapes and reveal their hidden drama, their quiet poetry, and their enduring beauty.
I work primarily in pastels and oils, drawn to the way each medium allows me to capture mood and texture in different ways. Most of my finished pieces begin with plein air studies and reference photographs, but the heart of each painting lies in the memory of being there—in the crisp air, the shifting light, the stillness of nature.
As a Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America and a Master Circle Member of the International Association of Pastel Societies, I remain dedicated to pushing my work further while also sharing what I’ve learned through workshops. For me, painting is both a way of preserving the landscapes I love and an invitation for others to see the extraordinary in the everyday.
