Pennies, Pumplin Stems & Animal Crackers Painting

"I am from a very artistic family that has inspired and motivated me to be creative and challenge myself. I consider drawing to be the most important artistic skill to master, and continually remind myself when I am drawing to listen to my eyes and not my brain. I have found the artistic process to be a wonderful outlet for my self-expression, creativity, and imagination. Art also provides me with a state of calmness and improves my problem solving skills. I love to work with the effects of color, light and shadow in watercolor and pastel. I feel my paintings of glass objects such as marbles, jars of preserved fruits & vegetables, glass candies and ornaments have improved my use of color and design. I am fascinated by the reflections and colors of glass surfaces as well as their cast shadows. It is amazing how many different colors your eye can see in a shadow when you really study and observe it. I teach art classes on the weekends and enjoy seeing my students get excited and inspired with the progress of their own paintings as they learn new techniques."