About

Artist’s Statement

I grew up in a rural area south of Seattle where I spent much of my time with my grandparents, who farmed, made things by hand and lived a rich but frugal life.  My grandmother introduced me to oil painting, and her “matter-of-fact” portrayal of her subjects stayed with me as I matured.  I studied art and architecture through college and I obtained a Master’s Degree in the late 1980s in Philadelphia.  I built a career around a parallel focus on creating art and architecture, and though I have left that rural life behind, I have always felt the pull of the lessons of my childhood and a connection to my grandparents’ generation. 

In the early 1990s I became disabled, which dramatically changed every aspect of my life.  I have been fortunate to be able to rebuild my life around the limitations of a wheelchair, and I now find that much of my inspiration for making art, and for life in general, is an effort to stay connected to my grandparents and their generation’s resourceful way of life.  Many of my paintings recall my childhood experiences with them and the things they taught me on the farms and fields that I played in and helped to work on.  My disability profoundly limits my options to engage the world physically, but painting from memories of that rural life keeps me tangibly connected to my grandparents and gives my life balance. 

All works of art shown here are for sale (prices listed under each work), and I do welcome commissions.

Architects’ Statement

Several members of my family were builders and I learned early how to put a house together.  I majored in Architecture at the University of Washington and worked for several years for Wendell Lovett and Larry Rouch, among other Seattle figures.  I went to Philadelphia in 1985 where I earned a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.  I then worked on several large museum projects (including the interiors of the National Gallery Addition in London) for Venturi, Rauch & Scott Brown for several years before returning to Seattle. Back home again, I worked mostly on large residences for Olson/Sundberg and commercial and civic projects for NBBJ before working on my own.  I now maintain a small practice focusing primarily on new or remodeled residences, small commercial projects, and disability-related design and advocacy.  I collaborate with a group of designers and architects when other skills and manpower beyond my own are needed. 

I am compelled by craftsmanship and I take pride in designing my architectural projects to be simple and elegantly inhabitable.  I use durable materials that are easy to maintain and I take advantage of sun and weather exposure to provide my clients with well-designed, naturally-lit environments that inspire.  I use new technologies to reduce dependence on utilities and to create disability-friendly environments.  Whenever possible, I observe a Universal Design approach to all projects and my disability designs provide my clients with barrier-free homes and environments that are universally usable for any individual, regardless of limitations or age.  I tend toward contemporary modern design, and I am a contextual designer whose first obligation is to my client’s goals and the opportunities of the site and context.

References and C.V. available upon request.

Website

This website began as the ePhoto wordpress template designed by Nick Roach of Elegant Themes www.elegantthemes.com.  It was recommended to me by Maureen Hoffman of Kunstdame www.kunstdame.com (whose advice is golden) and substantially modified for my use by the brilliant Matt Cassarino of Superlative Internet www.supint.com.


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