AS A CHILD…
I was raised on a dairy farm in Northern Illinois. I was crazy about horses, and drew them often with whatever was handy. I spent long, lazy afternoons climbing apple trees, day dreaming about the future while lying in the grass at the edge of the woods, and exploring every nook and cranny of my universe.
THE EVOLUTION OF CREATIVITY…
As a teenager I had a dream of becoming a painter, and fell in love with the smell of oil paint and turpentine. As time passed, I added many different art forms to my creative adventures, including stained glass, beadwork, traditional needlework, basketry, guitar music, traditional Irish concertina music—even using bread as an art form. I'm still excited by all sorts of creative endeavors, the latest of which is creating collages in Photoshop with vintage images and scans of old photographs. Altered books also fascinate me endlessly, and I have several old volumes that are just waiting for me to turn them into pieces of unique sculpture.
HERE I AM…
I can't imagine myself in any profession other than graphic design (except perhaps the creation of ceramic art tiles)! I love every part of the design process, and get a real thrill out of seeing my work printed out on fresh paper, or watch my website pop up on the screen when I've worked hard to get every bit of code just right! I can spend hours at the computer lost in creating one of my digital collages, and know that I will continue to keep this art form going for a long time. After all, it's one way of making art without having to clean up after myself when I'm done.
A PASSION FOR HISTORY…
I've been an 18th century reenactor for 15 years now, and spend a lot of time constructing period clothing for the French & Indian War and Revolutionary War periods. More recently, I started reenacting the American Civil War , and the process of researching the accurate clothing of 19th century women, especially for my persona as a government-hired military laundresses, has been a most enjoyable journey. I plan to add World War I to my list of eras as a British Red Cross Nurse in the coming year, and am thrilled at the prospect of spanning several centuries in my own form of time travel….