What sparked your interest in painting?
I’ve always done artwork of some kind from the time I was very small, through high school, and attending Ohio State University, majoring in commercial art. But I had never delved into decorative painting until 1988 when Vera Collier and I took a class with Linda Berry, of Cridersville, Ohio. She introduced both of us to basic acrylic painting techniques and provided a great variety of projects at different levels. We painted with her for a few years before attending our first HOOT convention around 1990. We were both hooked on all the wonderful artwork!
Do you remember the first piece you painted?
Yes, but it was a self-taught project (an apple on a small slate) that I attempted a few years before my first actual class. I still have the apple as well as the first painting I did in Linda’s classes…a garden sampler on a wood board. (Note: Pictured below)
What are your favorite surface, medium and subject to paint?
I’ve discovered in recent years that I love working on paper, so my favorite surface would be watercolor paper, which leads into watercolors being my favorite medium. I also love charcoal and have been doing a lot of that on large canvases. And I’ve recently started to combine charcoal with watercolors, which is an experiment. Things could get messy! Lol! I also love acrylics and now I do a lot more with them than decorative painting. My favorite subjects for painting or drawing are botanicals, the sun and the moon and the night sky, religious subjects, and animals.
Is there a project you still want to tackle?
I still have so many projects that I want to tackle that I really don’t know where to begin! But I line them up and try to do one or two a week. There are several Ronnie Bringle projects that are prepped and waiting for me. But, I’m easily distracted by new things like gel plate printing with acrylic paint on a variety of papers… and then using those papers to do origami! I never suspected that I would love paper folding!
What inspires you to paint today?
I am inspired by the large variety of artists and their videos on the internet, by animal and botanical photographs (taken by myself and others), by my art journaling students, and by the encouraging comments I here from family, friends, and people who like my artwork.
