I am a retired art teacher with a lifelong love for drawing and painting and a room full of canvases. I was born and raised in Hammond, Indiana, just outside Chicago, got a high school job in a gallery (mostly stretching and framing canvases), getting to know many contemporary working artists.

On my first visit to the Chicago Art Institute I fell in love with the Impressionists, especially Monet and Caillebotte, who painted real people in real places. And I loved the huge size of much of the work.

A summer painting workshop at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, was where I switched from oils to acrylics and finally had a chance to create my own work that could be measured in feet rather than inches.

I had my first one-man shows while in college in Tennessee, then moved to California in pursuit of an MFA. Work and a family became my primary focus, but I continued to enter local shows and paint after the kids were in bed.

Breath No. 1 Acrylic on Birch Panel 6 x 6…$95

Breath No. 2 Acrylic on Birch Panel 6 x 6…$95

Breath No. 3 Acrylic on Birch Panel 6 x 6…$95

Well, Of Course Acrylic on Birch Panel 12 x 12…$450

After Breakfast Acrylic on Canvas 37 x 25…$3,700

Outside the Museum Acrylic on Canvas 22 x 26…$1,500

46 Years Acrylic on Birch Panel 25 x 21…$1,500

Something in the Air Acrylic on Birch Panel 12 x 12…$450

While I have painted everything from landscapes to pure abstracts, I keep coming back to people as my preferred subject. I see joy and beauty in people just doing life. I paint what I notice, often using a camera to capture images. (In San Francisco I collected a mountain of photo references to be used later.)

Taxi Stand Acrylic on Canvas 38 1/4 x 26 1/4…$2,950

I always have music when I paint. When I find the right soundtrack for a piece, I let it play and replay until I finish.

Once our kids were grown and my wife and I retired from teaching, we left our home in California and moved to the Pacific Northwest. Now I have space and time to make painting my focus and the incredible Oregon Coast is just an hour away.

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