How many children do
you have? What are their ages?
One son, 12 years old
How did your artistic
career begin?
While I colored and drew from a very early age, I was
also good at math and science so I didn’t study art formally until after
graduating from college. Up to that
point, I read everything I could on drawing and painting – trying to educate
myself. After graduation, I moved to Baltimore
and, while I was starting to have some success with my work (winning
competitions and selling frequently), I decided to start formally
studying. I first attended MICA, but
because of my desire for a realistic, old master style foundation, I quickly
found myself looking for another teacher.
I first studied with David Zuccarini (a graduate of the Corcoran School
and then a graduate of MICA as a student of Joseph Sheppard) .
I moved to New York and there studied at the Art Students
League and took as many workshops as I could there and at Studio Incamminati in
Philadelphia.
Once my son was born, I stayed pretty close to home and
focused on my own body of work and the business of my art.
What is your
Parenting/work/art situation?
I am married and have a studio outside the home in a
commercial building about a half mile from our house. At one point, I had almost 40 students
teaching only basic foundational studies.
However, as my personal commissions and commitments grew, I started scaling
back.
We started homeschooling our son last year. This forced me to get very creative in order
to get my painting time in. Often, I
will go to the studio and paint in the evenings and on weekends when my husband
is home. We remain flexible and have
started plans for a studio in our back yard.
Do you now or have
you ever worked other jobs while pursuing your art. How to you preserve time
and energy for your art. Are there ways that your art benefits from your other
job?
From 1983 – 2004 I worked full time and painted every
other available moment. When Erik was
born in 2004, we made the decision that I would stay home and paint full
time. Because I painted the entire time
I was employed, many of my coworkers and company management were familiar with
my work. One of my biggest commissions
was from my former employer to the International Securities Exchange as a gift.
When do you make time
to do your art and do you have a regular art routine?
I find time every day to do either a drawing or work on a
painting. Now that life is a little more
crazy, I often will work either very early or later in the evening. I still have regular studio time for students
on Sundays, Monday evenings and Wednesdays.
Do your children get involved with your art?
He loves to draw in a ‘graphic novel’ sort of way. He is
often in my paintings as he makes some spending money modeling for me.
Do they inspire aspects of your art?
He often inspires …sometimes in his expressions,
sometimes just the way he’s sitting or looking at something. I also try to do a portrait of him every year
or so as he grows.
How has having children changed your artwork?
Well, it certainly has expanded
my level of “life experience”…as with an actor, the more you experience, the
more you can express, and so I feel like I have more to say in my work after
having Erik. I feel my work is getting
deeper in its message as I paint with a lot of allegory and metaphor.
How does making time for artwork influence other household
tasks?
Hahaha…well, I certainly could
do more loads of laundry if I wanted.
Our house is not spotless, but my husband and I are a good team and when
I have a big deadline, he picks up the slack.
We live fairly simply so it makes it easier to stay on top of. I definitely get help when I need it though!
Have different ages of your children been more difficult to
make time for artwork and in which ways?
It’s certainly easier to make
time for artwork as Erik gets older. I
can put him on task for an assignment or a project and we can often work
together in the studio. When he was very
young, it was much more difficult and I would have a “mother’s helper” for when
my husband was traveling or not able to babysit.
How do you encourage your children to be artistic?
I encourage Erik to be open to
all kinds of ideas and artistic expressions.
This is pretty easy as he is a very, very “out of the box” thinker. Right now, he’s creating his own computer
games and the graphics to go with them.
Do you feel extra pressure as an artist to raise your
children to be artistic?
No. I encourage him to listen to his own voice in
terms of creative expression in whatever
form it takes.
Have you seen your children take inspiration from your
artwork?
Yes actually. He sees how I come up with ideas and sketch
them, and then they turn into a painting or large drawing. This has taught him how to follow through
with an idea to fruition and to have patience.
In what ways does being an artist make being a parent harder
or easier?
Well, as an artist I’ve been
taught and encouraged to “see”. To me,
this means actually seeing him…being present and identifying signs of sadness,
frustration, unanswered questions, etc. – whatever he may be feeling but
finding a hard time expressing. As a
parent, being open and creative and aware of him makes it a little bit easier. Still, parenting is the most challenging job
I’ve ever had.
Do you think being a parent affects the way you are
perceived as an artist?
Good question….I have no idea. I guess others would have to answer that one.
J
Are there any other things about Balancing Painting and
Parenting that you would like to share? Hmmmm….just take one day at a time – grab art time when
you can until they reach an age that gives you a bigger window.
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