ABOUT ME
I have dabbled in art since I was very young, but like many raising children, working and just generally dealing with life, my art was put on the back burner. Then…Several life events happened in a short span of time that changed the direction of life as I knew it. In 2008 while living in Southern New Mexico my husband and I were running a very lucrative real estate business when the real estate bubble burst literally wiping our business off the map. At that point I began pursuing my love for art as an alternative way to make money. We started with a textile 3D art business. Predominantly selling originally designed handmade wet felted fiber hats with needle felted designs. I also began teaching fiber art classes. This art business kept us afloat while my husband looked to find steady work for himself.
Moving to Nebraska
I had never even visited Nebraska much less considerd living there, but in the winter of 2011 my husband was offered a job that would again support my husband, myself and our son (the last adult child living at home). Such a different culture from the Southwest. I took my 3D textile/felting art with me and started doing art shows just as in the southwest, the response was very good and it looked like I wasn’t going to miss a beat. Then a terrible thing happened…my son’s life became very difficult, he ended up addicted to drugs and alcohol. This rocked our world! By 2013 being thick in that battle I just couldn’t muster up the inspiration anymore to continue with the felted art. Sure I did other things to keep my spirits up as the battles went on, but trying to live and work with him became my main focus. He got married, brought a child into the world, then divorced, a nasty custody battle began and was fought all while under the oppression of addiction and heartache. Without any close friends or family to share the burden with, many tears were shed and prayers said. The absence from the creativity I love went on until the fall of 2016.
Diving back in
In the fall of 2016 I was not only worn out from so many complicated life adjustments but then along came yet another blow. The loss of Rebar. The horse I raised from a baby. Rebar caught an auto-immune disease and had to be put down at the tender young age of seven. He was my escape from the current chaos of my life, my hobby, my friend. You horse people know what Im talking about. I still miss him to this day. Anyway, with the loss of Rebar I decided to not go through the heartache of that kind of loss again so I had to figure something else out. I had my faith…never lost it, but without an escape I knew I would be struggling again with the burdens of life, so I turned back to something I was familiar with “Art”. It started with a few pencils and paper and the people I loved. You can check out that development in my blog section "Fantasy World". Pencil drawings were fun, the subjects were delightful and that kept me going until yet another life setback came along!
Learning new skills
My husband and I were out on a leisurely motorcycle ride on a beautiful summer afternoon and while returning from the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha the unthinkable happened. We were in a motorcycle accident! Coming up to a light, the car in front of us slammed on his breaks which did not give my husband enough time to stop…BAM! I was the passenger, so he took the brunt of the fall, my husband was very badly injured! I got away with just a broken arm, but it was my left arm and guess what? I’m left handed, so there went my ability to draw (at least for awhile) You can bet I did a lot of praying, so much was going on…husband in the ICU (but improving everyday), A son whose life was in shambles, and no one other than God to lean on left me feeling broken and burdened. In between visiting my husband in the hospital and juggling chores, I dug out a canvas I had long tucked away and decided to give oil painting a try. I had briefly played with oil painting a few years back, but the textile work held my interest more at the time. Now with a broken arm, the canvas and some old brushes I started to paint with my right hand. My first painting slowly emerged and It came out pretty good, check out my blog about “new beginnings”. So I tried another, "Bugs Eye View" only with this painting I found my left hand occasionally stealing the brush out of my right hand without me even realizing it! From that point on I was hooked. Over the last 31/2 years I have painted (with my left hand, lol) and worked with both pencil drawing and watercolor as a way to help me continue to pursue the joy of creating and the peace that comes with it as I deal with the stresses of life.
Mixed emotions
This art is very close to my heart, many of the pieces have a deep meaning to me which I share in the blog section. But, at this point the walls, and shelves are filling up and it is time for me to move some of these heartfelt pieces on. I have found peace, strength and joy in them, each on is a true labor of love, but in order to continue to create I need to find them homes with people who will love them as much as I have. The beauty of art is that it is meant to be shared and I would like to share my art with you! After viewing the gallery, if you are interested in any of the art I have for sale I hope you will take a moment to contact me.
On a side note, my husband has survived his ordeal and my son is completely healed. To find out more about how things turned out just head over to the blog…lots of short stories on my perspectives on life and art.