I am a native Nebraskan, living and working in Omaha. I hold undergraduate degrees in Fine Arts (ceramics) and K-12 Education. I have also earned a master’s degree in management. I have taught all area of art in a school setting, as well as a recreational setting. I worked for the Omaha Parks and & Recreation Department for 28 years before retiring in 2007 to devote my efforts to my art.
Over the years I have worked in a variety of media, 30 years hand building clay, over 14 years exploring glass fusion. As in the Modern Style of Architecture I have chosen to base my work on shape and color. As a modernist designer I choose to stay away from “fussy” decorative elements, preferring to emphasize geometric shapes, placing a strong emphasis on simplicity, texture and clarity of form.
Glass: Glass Fusion is a process using colored sheets of glass, time and temperature. Each item is hand cut, assembled and fired to around 1600 degrees. This allows the sheets of colored glass to melt into each other or fuse. They are then slowly cooled to prevent breakage. This process takes about 10 hours, after which each piece is hand sanded. Different results can be achieved by altering the amount of heat and length of firing time. Plates and bowls undergo an additional firing to around 1300 degrees in order to “slump” them into a desired shape.
Paintings: In 2011 I re-discovered my paint brush and have been exploring how my years working with glass and clay translate to acrylic painting. I am still true to my geometric shapes and generally use an earth tone palette but add lots of texture and color hues hidden within each finished piece. I work on canvas, watercolor papers mounted on canvas and wood panels. Sizes vary from small framed accent pieces to large 30in x 40in canvases.
Since 2016 I have been exploring oil and cold wax medium. I find this a very satisfying way of working as I am able to carve thru the layers to uncover previous layers and build up textures not always achievable with acrylics.
My work is currently available at these locations:
Omaha, NE: Old Market Artists Gallery, lower level of the Passageway
