People might be surprised to learn that I’ve run multiple marathons and numerous marathon ski races. In the studio, I tend toward chaos and disorganization. Enduring those grueling long-distance races requires a level of discipline that helps offset my natural messiness. It’s a real-world example of the yin/yang concept of balance that I explore and express through my artwork.

I love this question. I could write a graphic novel about my passion for music! But the short answer is, today it’s The Beatles’ “I’ve Got a Feeling.” Paul’s raw vocals, John’s gritty guitar, the energy… just wow! Music is a true necessity in my life. It’s been the soundtrack to everything I do, and it has a huge impact on my thoughts and emotions. I have well over a thousand playlists on Spotify. In the studio, the music I choose lifts me and propels me forward as I work. I think I must listen to music between 6 and 16 hours every day.

My creative clock has completely flip-flopped over the years. I used to be a night owl. Now, my prime creative window is morning; after my giant cup of mud, and before naptime! I do often work much later, but my sharpest focus and best ideas happen in the quiet of early morning.

For TV, my guilty pleasure is "Three’s Company”. The jokes are predictable and dated, but John Ritter’s physical comedy was just so good. My guilty pleasure movie is m“Napoleon Dynamite “…’nuff said!

My unusual skill is that I am an advanced yoga teacher. I earned my 200-hour certification at CorePower in 2017, and later achieved my 500-hour CYT in 2022. That advanced training culminated in an incredible trip to India, which also has really influenced my art.

If I weren’t an artist, I would love a life of traveling to exotic places, taking workshops to master new skills, and immersing myself in music festivals and Burning Man-type events. For me, nothing beats the thrill of seeing new places,

Right now, I am completely obsessed with water-based aerosol paint. It has been an absolute game changer for my studio practice. I have always loved the look of spray paint, but its heavy toxicity meant I could rarely use it unless I was working outside on a windy day. Now that I can safely use this water-based version indoors, I am experimenting with spray paint and stencil techniques way more than ever before.

An “Iron Chef” competition at the Uptown Art Fair paired visual artists with chefs to reflect their culinary process, sparking my obsession with unusual materials. During the mevent, I painted with fresh herbs, veggies and kitchen utensils, glued seasonings and food onto the canvas, and used discarded chicken skin as a paint stamp. I was thrilled when chef Dewey Ikeda and I won the competition! The event opened my mind to new textures and ways to lay down paint. Recently, I began breaking down natural loofah sponges for stamps and collage elements, and I’ve ordered a shed boa constrictor snakeskin from Etsy. I’m excited to use this skin and see how the concept of shedding skin makes me think about the artwork.

I don’t remember a specific moment when I decided to become an artist. My parents met at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and though they didn’t pursue art professionally, they constantly put materials and paper in front of me—probably just to keep me out of their hair! Their constant encouragement taught me to love me art making, and it was always my favorite class in K12 school, before going on to study art in college.

I was born in downtown Minneapolis and grew up in South Minneapolis, spending my childhood outdoors year-round. Summers were spent as “beach rats” at Lake Nokomis, while winters meant building sledding jumps on nearby hills and skating on the Nokomis ice rink. My dad loved hiking and we spent lots of time in state parks and on trails along the Mississippi. I am a proud product of the Minneapolis public school system, and the community colleges.

My number one influence is Jim Conaway, my longtime friend, colleague, and mentor of three decades. I learned everything about oil paint from Jim, from technical execution to developing my artistic vision. Another living artist who has taught me an immense amount about the artistic life is Brian Rutenberg, through his “studio visit” series of almost 100 artist talks, where he describes in eloquent detail every aspect and nuance of his highly successful career. Finally, among the myriad historical artists whose works and books I have studied, the top 3 (at this moment) are Klimt, Thiebaud and
Diebenkorn

If my painting had a personality, it would be just like me: deeply curious, thougtful, and open-minded. My work has a lot going on at once. It is basically a snapshot of how my brain works—full of ideas, and a big curiosity about the world.

I would describe my work as a mix of abstract landscape, experimentation and urban street art. I use a lot of layers of collage and mixed media, combining bright, messy splashes of color with tight graphic patterns and hard lines. The whole thing balances a feeling of loose freedom with tight control. It is high-energy art that gives your eyes a lot of different textures and shapes to explore.

The color I use most right now is teal, sometimes called blue lagoon, which is how I like to think of it. I love that oceanic color because the sky reflects into the water, making it feel like it connects the whole planet. Oceans are huge, complex, and beautiful, but they can also change from calm and placid to stormy and dangerous. That deep teal blue captures that massive, quiet energy aspect of our world.