MY STORY

The Early Years

I’ve never lost that childhood excitement and wonder of creating something from a blank canvas. I grew up on the West Bank of New Orleans, in Marrero, often looking from the top of the levee in awe of the foreign land across the bank of the Mississippi River. Everything about its architecture, festive atmosphere, stately homes, streetcars, horse drawn buggies, steam boats with large colorful paddle wheels, slate covered sidewalks and streets drew my curiosity then and now.

I attended grade school in Algiers at Aurora Gardens Academy and high school in Gretna, graduating from Archbishop Blenk in 1992. All along the way fully consumed with athletics and art each an every day. I then attended Nicholls State in Thibodaux aimed at a degree in Graphic Art.

During my time at Nicholls State I developed a medical syndrome called POTS, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, which resulted in blackouts. Those blackouts quickly took over my life, taking away first my ability to play volleyball, then my ability to drive, to attend classes without being strapped into a wheelchair and ultimately my independence when the blackouts became a daily event averaging 8 per day. 

Ultimately the blackouts led to a life changing event in October of 1995 when I passed out on a street and was run over by a car. At the scene of the accident I was, for a while, a quadriplegic vegetable regaining the movement of two fingers on my right hand before leaving the scene. I instantly developed a profound appreciation and gratitude for the uses those two fingers could grant me for a lifetime. YOU SEE WHEN YOU LOSE EVERYTHING, YOU APPRECIATE EVERYTHING! I was driven to recover to my fullest potential and complete my degree. It took me a year and a half to relearn how to use my left side, regain the ability to walk again and discover a new way to deal with my “new normal” of memory issues spanning both short term issues and amnesia due to the extensive head trauma from the accident. I returned to Nicholls State in 1997, met Josh, married Josh and earned my art degree in December of 1999. Walking across that stage was an accomplishment of determination and a symbolic achievement to overcome regardless the obstacle. Along my road of recovery I’ve learned an appreciation for the little things in life and the importance of family, as well as a profound understanding of the power of positive thought and the desire to notice the beauty that surrounds us daily. 

Family & A New Life’s Passion

Family quickly took on new purpose and emphisis with marriage and two children to come in Coryn and Carter. While they were little art took the backseat, or rather the storage of a closet, until Josh gifted me a weekend in Nola.  That weekend was filled with touring galleries and walking the streets that have longed called my name and filled my creative thoughts. His goal of igniting the spark of art in me not only worked but the very next week it started, what now has become, my life’s passion. Josh left for a “work trip” to Vegas and I dove into creating something unique to me, that encompassed all of my favorite elements of art I’ve learned along the way. I eliminated what I didn’t like about painting and only kept the good, happy parts and in that moment I was forever changed. I paint what I love, I embrace the history that surrounds us and I take in all the details as if it’s the last time I’ll ever see it. You see, I want to create a lasting memory in case my memory fails me in time. These paintings I create will forever hold all I hold dear of my surroundings while reminding me when I can no longer recall the why and the where. 

I paint a space as if it’s all for you to take in, free of distracting elements and people impeding your view. It’s that moment we all wait for, if that person would just move a couple more steps I could get this photo kind of thing. I paint a space that is up to the viewer to decide if it’s in the present or if it’s a hundred years ago. I also paint reminders of positivity as recurring themes because the power of positive thought is what got me through and continues to get me through the toughest of times. Regardless the desperation of the moment there is always a positive to be found. When we see that positive, no matter how small, suddenly more can appear brightening our path allowing us to see beyond the moment.

My Painting Style

I say, “I’M A CARVER OF PAINT”, a term I use because it comes the closest to how I feel best describes the way I paint. With a flick of the wrist, a twist of the tip or edge of knife, an undercut of the paint, I create peaks and valleys in my paintings that remind me of carving clay. Using palette knives allows me a freedom I never found with brushes. I play in piles of paint minimally mixing the oil paint on my palette, choosing to let the paint partially mix on the canvas as it finds its form. I paint in an Impasto style, a three dimensional painting style that is truly a sculptural form of painting using heavy application of paint creating lush textures. Every angle you view the original paintings you will see something differently. The way the light cast shadows off of the peaks and valleys of the textured paint are something you can’t achieve in a traditional painting style. I’m heavily influenced by artist of the Impressionism movement such as Van Gogh, Monet and Klimt. My art reflects bright colors, high contrast, the use of dot work influenced by pointillism and the incredible textures that surround us everyday. I continue to be inspired daily by the landscapes and buildings from South Louisiana including New Orleans and the Houma/Thibodaux area I now call home. The satisfaction of bringing life to an idea that previously only existed in my head is a major drive for me to create. After the planning and the time spent creating, everything merges together when I see it as a completed piece. It's no longer a stepped process to achieve an end result, but an intricate work I've given my all too. That moment never losses its appeal.

I hope you enjoy viewing my art as much as I have enjoyed creating them. I know I could live multiple lifetimes and never have enough time to create all I have in my head, but I’m up to the challenge of one lifetime to get all I can in, so stay tuned for plenty more to come.

My Studio/My Happy Place