Watercolor is my medium of choice throughout my life and one I always returned to between careers in graphic and rug design and animation. For subject matter, I often turn to the easily-overlooked landscape of disrepair I find all over Northern California.

My paintings of old mailboxes, VWs, and West Marin scenes reflect humor and recognition of our unique life here. There is a laid-back quality in our world that still exists between encroaching development and high-tech business. The subjects delight me as I paint them but also remind me they are a record of what’s fast disappearing.

Many pieces in the Swimmers series were painted as an escape from the stifling heat in my studio and from the isolation I felt brought on by the pandemic. I was projecting a lot of myself into these scenes as they helped me feel refreshed and alive. The very things I felt when I was an avid swimmer in my youth.

Both categories, though very different, have longing as an emotional touchstone. I believe they both are trying to recapture scenes or feelings that are beyond or almost beyond our reach but very much alive within memory.