Recently retiring after a 36 year career as an engineer has given me a chance to explore a second career as an artist.  I am a self taught artist and I have always enjoyed doing art.   Working full time as an artist has really been an opening up process for me and I'm looking forward to how my work evolves and what themes develop.

Developing the ideas for my work starts at my computer, experimenting with color, composition, and shape. The computer design becomes a sketch for the final art work in acrylic paint on canvas. As I paint I remind myself that I am still sketching. I strive to be fearless, to work quickly, and continue to explore and develop the subject beyond my computer sketch.  I have a nostalgia for pop art that has a strong influence on my work. I like closely cropped images that capture the essence of the subject and I enjoy painting portraits.

I like the "work" of making art, everything from building the stretcher frames and stretching and priming the canvas to developing my sketch into a final painting. I read somewhere that Keith Haring believed in "reducing the stakes" in his art, often working quickly and with inexpensive materials. Being retired and building my stretcher frames, stretching and priming my own canvases has reduced the stakes for my art and I am enjoying the freedom.