My style of painting is influenced by both impressionism, and representational art. I don't like to get stale and caught in one style. Sometimes I like to paint thick and colorful similar to Fechin and Bongart. Then again I like the misty, mystery of fog with hues of low values as in Winslow Homer.

Plein Air direct painting teachers of mine have been Don Ward and George Pate - my very first lessons from these men were taken in 1999 followed by Ray Roberts, Ralph Oberg, John Budicin, Kevin MacPherson, Joan Marron LaRue, Matt Smith, Ken Roth and Norma Holmes to name a few. My portrait teachers have been Dan Goozee, David Leffel, Micheal Shane Neal, Zchaoming Wu, Chris Saper, and David Kinker. I attended San Jose State College majoring in Commercial Art.

To continue doing something I enjoy doing every day, I have to have a lot of self-motivation, coupled with excitement and joy as well as a strong desire to continue teaching myself; but at the same time I have to save plenty of quiet, alone time for myself. I try to balance my life with people and contacts plus retreat time. Retreat time can also include working in the garden, sitting or hiking. This gives me the meditative time or thought processing time I need.

 

Also visit the website for Plein-Air Painters of Oregon and Arts Central.

The picture below is "The Fish That Got Away" painted on the wooden doors of a summer home.