I'm retired and living in central Florida. My passion for art and visual representation of things is a trait that goes way back. It started on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, when I was about 12 years old, painting alongside my grandmother off a beach by Palos Verdes, California. I didn't know it at the time, but it turns out plein air painting (on location, outdoors) goes back to the days of Rembrandt and was glorified by the Impressionists, such as Monet. I was bitten by the art bug!
I took a lot of time off between those early days of painting in the 70's until around 1990. After high school I worked as a mechanical draftsman until 1983 when I went back to college in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My (short-sighted) dream was to be a fashion illustrator, maybe venture down to Chicago. But things don't always work out as planned and I came out of school and worked as a keyline paste-up artist for about a year. A friend of mine was working at a technical publications company and said I should try to get hired as a technical illustrator. Isometric and perspective drawing was something new for me, and I ended up working as an illustrator for five years. During that time I didn't do much of any fine art, except for a few commissioned graphite portraits. I was too busy working.
In 1998 I partnered with a couple guys in Michigan and started a software development company, sold it, and was "purged" during the dotcom bubble meltdown of 2000. What to do? With time on my hands, in between jobs, I got involved with Grand Valley Artists which helped me venture back into being more right brain creative. I also learned how to use pastels. I started painting more. My love of the outdoors and landscapes was a natural path to take with my painting. Then, a move back to Wisconsin.
I took a lot of time off between those early days of painting in the 70's until around 1990. After high school I worked as a mechanical draftsman until 1983 when I went back to college in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My (short-sighted) dream was to be a fashion illustrator, maybe venture down to Chicago. But things don't always work out as planned and I came out of school and worked as a keyline paste-up artist for about a year. A friend of mine was working at a technical publications company and said I should try to get hired as a technical illustrator. Isometric and perspective drawing was something new for me, and I ended up working as an illustrator for five years. During that time I didn't do much of any fine art, except for a few commissioned graphite portraits. I was too busy working.
In 1998 I partnered with a couple guys in Michigan and started a software development company, sold it, and was "purged" during the dotcom bubble meltdown of 2000. What to do? With time on my hands, in between jobs, I got involved with Grand Valley Artists which helped me venture back into being more right brain creative. I also learned how to use pastels. I started painting more. My love of the outdoors and landscapes was a natural path to take with my painting. Then, a move back to Wisconsin.
I exhibited at three galleries in SE Wisconsin for about seven years and got involved with the Wisconsin Plein Air Painters and became very interested (again) in this type of painting. Along the way I was winning several awards in different plein air events. For five years I participated in the Door County Plein Air Festival quick paint event, selling out each year.
In 2015, my wife and I retired and moved to The Villages, Florida. My art has taken another turn to abstract. My portfolio is split between landscape (studio and plein air) and abstract, oil, acrylic and mixed media. My art life is this never-ending experiment into visualization. Please feel free to contact me about anything you see on my website.
Awards and Achievements
2023- 2nd Place, Mount Dora, (FL) "Paint the Town" Plein Air event
2023- Accepted Juried Events; Mount Dora Art Festival (FL), St. Petersburg Festival for the Arts (FL), Bradenton Riverwalk Fine Art Festival, Halifax Art Festival, Daytona Beach (FL)
2022- Accepted Juried Events; Ocala Arts Festival (FL), Gainsville Downtown Art Fest (FL), Fiesta In the Park, Orlando (FL)
2017- 1st Place, Winter Park Paint Out (FL), Plein Air quick paint
2017- Past instructor at The Villages Enrichment Academy; Intro to Oil Painting and Advanced Oil Painting
2016- 2nd Place, Inspired by the Masters exhibit, Villages Art League, FL
2015- 1st Place Entertainment category, Wisconsin State Fair Plein Air Exhibit
2013- Honorable Mention, Pewaukee, WI Plein Air event
2012-2016- Lead instructor, Intro to Oil Painting, Wauwatosa Adult Education program
2012- 2nd Place New Berlin, WI Plein Air Paint Out
2010- Honorable Mention and Artists Choice New Berlin, WI Plein Air Paint Out
2009- 2nd Place Waukesha, WI Art Fest
2008-2014- Invited artist Open Canvas, Milwaukee WI
2007- Honorable Mention Downer Avenue Plein Air Festival (aka Third Ward Plein Air Festival)
In 2015, my wife and I retired and moved to The Villages, Florida. My art has taken another turn to abstract. My portfolio is split between landscape (studio and plein air) and abstract, oil, acrylic and mixed media. My art life is this never-ending experiment into visualization. Please feel free to contact me about anything you see on my website.
Awards and Achievements
2023- 2nd Place, Mount Dora, (FL) "Paint the Town" Plein Air event
2023- Accepted Juried Events; Mount Dora Art Festival (FL), St. Petersburg Festival for the Arts (FL), Bradenton Riverwalk Fine Art Festival, Halifax Art Festival, Daytona Beach (FL)
2022- Accepted Juried Events; Ocala Arts Festival (FL), Gainsville Downtown Art Fest (FL), Fiesta In the Park, Orlando (FL)
2017- 1st Place, Winter Park Paint Out (FL), Plein Air quick paint
2017- Past instructor at The Villages Enrichment Academy; Intro to Oil Painting and Advanced Oil Painting
2016- 2nd Place, Inspired by the Masters exhibit, Villages Art League, FL
2015- 1st Place Entertainment category, Wisconsin State Fair Plein Air Exhibit
2013- Honorable Mention, Pewaukee, WI Plein Air event
2012-2016- Lead instructor, Intro to Oil Painting, Wauwatosa Adult Education program
2012- 2nd Place New Berlin, WI Plein Air Paint Out
2010- Honorable Mention and Artists Choice New Berlin, WI Plein Air Paint Out
2009- 2nd Place Waukesha, WI Art Fest
2008-2014- Invited artist Open Canvas, Milwaukee WI
2007- Honorable Mention Downer Avenue Plein Air Festival (aka Third Ward Plein Air Festival)
