Why do you do what you do? What drives you to create art?
I come by creativity naturally, my mother was an artist and my sister is, too. It is something I can’t imagine living without but unfortunately, I think things through for so long, sometimes that gets in the way of actually working on the project.
What other talents do you indulge in?
I love to sing, I love to read and I love to design dolls houses. These things keep me occupied much of the time, and I always have a song running through my head, so I am never without music. When I paint, I prefer to listen to some of the classics but nothing too heavy, it must be light and airy, as are the watercolor paintings I need to create.
Where do you create?
Most of my best ideas occur to me in the shower! I keep a pile of 3” x 5” index cards near the bathroom sink and am always running to make notes even before I have dried off.
What painting subjects please you most?
Architecture has always been an important part of my life, so I enjoy drawing and painting historic buildings and old houses. I once lived in a 1926 Tudor Revival house and the interesting facets of the house stayed with me and are an influence. My favorite place to visit is England and I love to create pictures of houses with their gardens.
Tell us about your interest in portraits...
I have always been fascinated by faces, particularly eyes. When I was a small girl, I drew pictures of eyes all over and they had makeup on. Even then, I must have known that I would never go a day without makeup myself. I have been known to follow people around (discreetly, of course) to try to memorize their faces for later drawings. Once at a concert in an historic church in London, I drew the profile of a young woman seated diagonally from me, she looked like Raphael's Madonna.
How did you learn Botanical Illustration?
I took a certificate course in Botanical Illustration at the New York Botanical Gardens in the Bronx, New York, studying detailed drawings of plants, flowers, leaves, vegetables and other items. We worked in pencil, pen and ink and finally, in watercolors. I also studied with Olivia Marie Braida-Chiusano, an extraordinary artist and teacher.
