I was born in Quebec, Canada and have been drawing since childhood. I attended the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania while working full time, and received several awards and prizes there. I moved to Colorado twelve years ago to be closer to the woods, mountains, and rivers. My plein air works tend to be rendered in pastel; my studio work, in oils. My subject matter references include sketching in the field, taking notes on color, and photographing what I see. I find that my shortcomings as a photographer are a benefit to me as a painter as they leave more room for embellishment and imagination.

I feel that landscape paintings are subject to a wide range of interpretations, especially those that simply present the subject without attaching a popular interpretation. Talking to people about my own work, I have found that they often read a great deal of meaning into my landscapes, meaning sometimes beyond, sometimes even in direct opposition to my own opinions or feelings. No landscape is ever empty, even the most desolate.

The more time I spend in the wilderness, the more I realize its subtle effects on feelings which evolve with every visit, place, and season. I am captured by the paradox of strength and delicacy, and opposition of color found in every ordinary event. Nature dictates my style, mood, medium, and composition, and my paintings reflect this diversity. I challenge the popular tendency to minimalize painting style. The greatest respect due to nature is through representation in an elaborate and personal style because it is the result of a “felt” experience.

I’ve found that others appreciate these insights and incorporate them into their own experiences.

Animals have become natural subject for me, and there is an unstoppable tendency to depict them in a humorous or quietly serene fashion: with “attitude” or with “character.”  Favorite references for their facial expressions include Rembrandt’s portraits, Thurber’s caricatures, and Norman Rockwell’s portraits.