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To Know Me Now Is To Know Me Then I was born in up state
New York and lived on a large farm while my dad taught at a local High
School. My siblings and I were fortunate to live in a beautiful and
creative environment. This is when I started to develop my “artist's eye." When I was very young, my family moved to Pennsylvania. My mother encouraged my sister, two brothers (also artists) and me to express ourselves creatively. My childhood memories include playing outdoors, exploring our world, painting, sculpting, drawing, sewing and cooking. My Father continued with his education, and we moved to many different schools. At one, I was told I drew a picture “wrong” by drawing outside the lines. I remember feeling bad that the teacher didn’t know one could go beyond the lines. This was the story of my life, and my mother encouraged me by saying; “It isn’t easy being green.” At school, I connected with my kindergarten teacher who drew our silhouettes on the wall using the light from a projector. It was a magical moment for me, and I knew I wanted to be a teacher. In my senior year of High School, my dream of teaching changed when I was unable to get to the school where I taught deaf children. Having to stay at the high school with a limited selection of classes; I entered the art program and discovered I had a talent. Realizing I could turn the passion I had for art into a career, I applied myself academically and went from an average student to Dean's List in no time. At Keystone Jr. College, I was introduced to painting, drawing, sculpting, photography, and art history. I loved it all, and knew I had found my place in the world. I was going to be an art teacher! I continued to make the dean’s list, won competitions, was published in the Scranton Times and Who’s Who Among Jr. Colleges and graduated Magna Cum Laude with the Presidential Award. Excited about painting and drawing, I went to N.Y.C to study illustration. The School of Visual Arts opened many doors, and I launched my career as a commercial artist. I won the Society of Illustrators student competition, Master Eagle competition and was granted an internship at Hallmark Cards where my first greeting card was printed! Before graduation, I was commissioned by several book and magazine companies and exhibited in various galleries. I graduated Summa Cum Laude with the Rhodes Family Award, the Presidential Award and the Alumni Society Merit Award. One class away from getting my teaching certificate; I was advised to put my teaching career on hold to paint professionally, so I began illustrating books, magazines, cards and posters and was commissioned by Lenox plates. I married and created my true masterpieces…my four children. While raising my children, my art has become very diverse and prolific: painting a life size nativity scene, murals, stage backdrops, portraits, pet portraits and the latest, a 3-d life size sculpture of a bear! When I am not at my children’s ice hockey or lacrosse games, piano or violin recitals, I can be found at Greater Norristown Art League painting from live models, or painting florals and landscapes, although my favorite thing is making sand sculptures at the beach! It’s the process of creating and not the product that thrills me. I am not as interested in the past as I am the present; however, I realize it is our past that makes us who we are. My goal isn’t to make a painting look photo realistic but to have the viewer wrap their arms around it, feel it breathe and be pulled into that moment. I want to turn memories into art and art into a memory that will last for generations. I now fulfill my dream of teaching by holding individual and small classes in my home studio, unsure of which passion comes first…teaching art or making art. Without one or the other, my life would not be complete. My 90 year old artist grandmother often preaches “balance” as the key to life. The world around us is constantly changing. The new computer is already out of date. The clothes I recently bought are now so last year and as hard as it is to say, people will move on. Paintings and sculptures will eventually fade away and turn to dust. However, a thought, a dream, an image, a feeling and a memory existed. Now that’s REAL and that’s ART. So, aren’t we all artists? I imagine so. “There is no beauty in art till it is shared. No magic till it is enjoyed. No meaning until it opens up our feeling for ourselves and for our friends.” Author: Unknown Mom and Dad, Thanks for teaching me to paint outside the lines… |
ART has enabled me to
find myself and to also lose my self.