Making art has always been my passion, it just took some time for me to figure it out. Growing up in South Dakota provided limited exposure to art and artists. I vaguely remember drawing some elementary school pilgrims, Christmas trees, houses and such, but never took an art class during my youth. My focus was on accounting and shorthand and all of the important subjects helpful for employment opportunities. During my final semester of college I enrolled in two art courses for fun. I was HOOKED and went on to earn a BS in Economics as well as BFA and MFA degrees in Metalsmithing and Jewelry from Kansas State University.
It has taken a lifetime for me to discover who I am and learn to embrace my interests, obsessions and creativity. Early on I gave way too much consideration to the opinion of others. At the beginning of my career as an artist, I worked as a studio jeweler with the goal being to earn a living. To me this meant pleasing my customers. As such, I created a signature line of jewelry which was sold in galleries throughout the United States and I was able to earn a reasonable income. It was a wonderful collection of unique jewelry, however at some point I grew tired of the repetition and lost interest in making similar looking pieces. In recent years, I have developed and tolerated a wild, crazy spectrum of ideas. I love working in all kinds of media and on any given day you can find me in the studio creating. Mosaic art, art dolls, sculpture, books, masks, and fiber arts are my current interests. And then…... I always end up back at my jewelry bench with new ideas for jewelry designs and obsess on creating them.
A spiritual path has influenced my life and work profoundly. Infusing calm, loving energy into my creations is of utmost importance to me at this time. Many of the pieces take a great deal of time to complete which allows for a mindful and meditative approach to the process. As I seek to transform the simple into the complex, the mundane into the beautiful or the ordinary into the extraordinary, the joyful experience of creating each piece is my motivation.
