I was born in 1975 in Walnut Creek, California, but spent the majority of my life living in the Chicagoland area. I have had a love of art since childhood.

I began my serious painting career when I was in high school. Many amazing family trips and a summer spent as a camp counselor in Colorado gave me an intense appreciation for the outdoors. It is nature that inspires me. I’m inspired to paint beautiful things that I have seen outdoors, more specifically, flowers, trees and mountains. My medium is oil and watercolor, and I enjoy painting pictures from photographs I have taken. I love color and use it intensely in my paintings.

My mother, who also enjoys watercolor painting, was my first art teacher. I have also taken classes at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the Old Town Triangle Association in Chicago and attended a week long art school in the French alps. Although I have sold some pieces, I am a Speech Language Pathologist by profession. I work with children with disabilities and try to enhance their communication through art whenever possible. Additionally, I have taught a children’s painting class during the summer for the last six years.

I’m currently living in Chicago with my husband, Mike and my dog, Fergus.