Artist Statement

As a painter, I am inspired to capture the beauty of nature expressed through flowers. I spend hours each day in my art studio, overlooking Okanagan Lake, where I paint close-up flowers on large canvases.

After suffering a health scare in 2004, I returned my attention to my love of art and have been painting professionally ever since. My seven years of post-secondary study in graphic arts, fine arts, and art education prepared me for my career as an artist, and I have been fortunate to experience success doing something I love. In 2015, Canada Post approached me to paint two pansies for their Flower Series stamps, then the Royal Canadian Mint contacted me to paint and design a $20 collector’s coin featuring a Black-eyed Susan flower. I am honoured to have been selected for these two National Commissions, which were highlights in my career. The following year, I was awarded the Excellence in the Visual Arts award by the Okanagan Arts Council.

In 2017, I achieved my Senior level membership with the Federation of Canadian Artists, through which I volunteer my time jurying artwork and mentoring emerging artists. In May that same year, my first solo exhibit, Pansy, and having a friend who was palliative, inspired me to begin a yearly fund-raising campaign in which I release limited edition pansy prints with 100% of proceeds to a worthy charity—something that has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career.

When I’m not in my studio—where I also explore additional creative pursuits such as photography, graphic design, and flower-pressing— I’m either tending my flower and vegetable gardens, writing, hiking, skiing, cycling, cooking, practicing/teaching yoga, or spending time with my family. I also recently published my first book, Lessons Learned (From the Short Stories of My Life).