Living and working in Gainesville, Florida, with a studio overlooking the wilderness of Paynes Prairie State Preserve, I am an artist surrounded by strong influences of the natural world. I’ve had solo exhibitions in private, civic and college galleries and numerous group exhibitions within the United States. My non-figurative work is dominated by a connection to Florida’s fragile ecology and to the fragility of the cultural environment observed during my travels to Cuba, Japan, and Western Europe – speaking to humanity’s quest to understand what it cannot perceive.

Cusp of Hope, 36 in. x 48in. Acrylic on canvas.

Making art for nearly 60 years in a variety of media, I have just completed the 19th painting in a series of nonrepresentational work directly referencing my photography of the built environment in Cuba from 2018-2019. Begun in 2018, the series is in dialog with principles of early American abstract art, contemporary events and the human condition.

Untitled, 60 in. x 36 in. Acrylic on canvas (In a private collection)

My work has been described as “duende-oriented” by the late Raul Villareal, an acclaimed Cuban painter, and also by NEA Visual Artist Fellow Jose Rodeiro. Spanish poet Federico Garcia Llorca explained in his 1920s lecture that “good” artists – writers, flamenco dancers, toreros – have “duende”, an inexplicable power of attraction, the ability, on rare occasions, to send waves of emotion through those watching and listening to them. About 5 years ago, that happened to me when a former teacher stepped to my easel for a critique and burst into tears.

Saturated color applied on large canvases in a malerisch style, executed with only palette knives large and small, typify my studio techniques. The subject of paintings tends to begin with a prompt from nature or the built environment but is not predetermined. The largest piece to date, “Transitions,” is a 12-ft-long, 5-ft-high triptych on exhibition loan to Santa Fe College Foundation. Another large painting, 10-ft-high, 4-ft wide, is in a private collection (see below).

My work is in private and institutional collections in Washington, D.C., Chicago, California, Florida, and various other locations. I was privately trained starting at age 6, and studied under Dennis Akin, Professor of Art at Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA. I grew up in Pennsylvania around my commercial artist father’s drafting table and “shop,” and have fond memories of family efforts to complete sign orders, industrial displays, scale models and innovative silk screen-technology projects.

On a brief biographical note, I received a political science degree from Dickinson College (1978), a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Michigan (1980) and a law degree from the University of Florida (1991). As a journalist, I was Political Editor of The Tampa Tribune and a stringer for The New York Times. For the past 32 years, I have practiced land use & environmental law and related litigation in my own firm. My son, William, 25, is completing his PhD at Columbia University in plasma physics. When he finishes, I look forward to quitting my day job to paint fulltime and play even more tennis.

Now that we are in Canonsburg, I am re-establishing my abstract art teaching with an hour PowerPoint presentation and demo on February 9 at the McMurray Art League

My work is displayed both nationally and internationally, most recently in St. Alberts Gallery in St. Alberts, Canada with the International Society of Experimental Artists (ISEA). I am Nautilus Fellow Member of ISEA which means six of my works have been accepted into international exhibits. I am also a member of the National Association of Pen Women, art member of Santa Clara, CA branch. NAWAFL branch continues to hold my affection even though I am in another state.

In addition to PA and FL, I have lived in New Jersey, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Washington where nature, the landscapes and master artists have informed my art.  I am a graduate of Chatham College (now University) in Pittsburgh.

Over the past year, I have been churning out new work. These are 4 Collections of significant works:

1. Thoughts on Dry Land Collection: After my first visit time at the Hoxsey Biomed Clinic in Tijuana, Mexico, I spent a month and a half living on the Baja Coast to rest and heal. I spent my days walking the sandy beach while watching the sky and water. I found it interesting to discover the changes in the color of the water and the sky during each passing moment of time. I set up a small workspace on the deck overlooking the Pacific. This collection represents a 45-day span of time for healing.

Thoughts on Dry Land Collection: Tempera watercolor on handmade paper. 7.5 in. x 11 in.

Thoughts on Dry Land Collection: And After. Tempera watercolor on handmade paper. 7.5 in. x 11 in.

2. Portals Collection: At home in Colorado, each morning sunrise beings a new day to discover and marvel at the colors in the sky. In my studio, I enjoy the happiness of successful smearing and pouring good news in textured layers on wood panel paintings. My daily meditations and readings are inspiring thoughts I ponder throughout the day.

Portal Collection: So natural. Varnish and pigment on wood panel. 10 in. x 10 in. x 2 in.

Portal Collection: I am. Varnish and pigment on wood panel. 10 in.x 10 in. x 2 in.

3. Prayer Collection: I enjoy scribbling and scratching meditations and pouring prayers out in a daily drawing diary on six large sheets of paper. I began this collection with charcoal drawings of plant roots and evolved the paintings using layer upon layer of colors and textures. I am interested in the evolution of darkness into the source of light.

4. Sky and Ocean Collection: Every six months I travel to the Hoxsey Biomedical clinic in Tijuana. I stay in a nice quaint hotel on Coronado Island. After every visit with my team of doctors I am filled with joy and happiness from the excellent progress reports. My time on Coronado Island is spent on the beach walking and breathing. My favorite moments are the early morning hours watching the sun rise, mesmerized by the sky and the ocean.

Sky and Ocean Collection: Be Present. Tempera watercolor on Arches. 11.69 in. x 16.53 in.

Every soul has its own path, has its own process. These paths all start in different places, and they trail off in all directions. Some of them go off-road; some of them go uphill; and sometimes, the paths converge. The souls that are on those paths get to connect. They get to exchange energy, to learn, unlearn, evolve, and collaborate.They gather with intention to create an event together with purpose. Each and every one of us will continue down our own paths.

T’Alyne. It feels good to be alive. I am the sky. Everything else is the
weather.

The idea that nonphysical aspects of our makeup, such as human consciousness, are connected to physical health is an ancient concept but is relatively new in contemporary Western Culture. There is a plethora of ways to heal. Finding the right pathway and portal to achieve success is as varied as we are all different

individuals. My goal is to share knowledge and words of encouragement to forge your own path. Learn, know, and grow your own understanding of the world and your own body.

As I reflect on the wild ride of the past few years, I am grateful for every challenge,every adversity, and every ache and pain. It is humbling to reflect on all that we have collectively navigated.

The opinions expressed by the author are not official positions of NAWA and are not intended as medical advice. NAWA strongly encourages creative expression by women enduring and recovering from illness.