Art has been a love and a passion since childhood, but was not encouraged in the middle class background I was raised in. It lay dormant until 1972 when I started to actively pursue woodcarving under the instruction of Roy Pierce, a retired gunsmith and carver. In 1974 I traveled on a quest through Europe and found the main woodcarving school in Switzerland where I learned all I could, focusing at that time on ornamentation.
The next several years were spent on perfecting techniques and learning related skills. A background of seven years of drafting and electrical theory, and an understanding of three-dimensional curves and enclosed abstract volumes led me into freeform sculpture. Combining the discipline of ornamentation and the freedom of sculpture with the variability of wood was, and continues to be, an interesting challenge. I was back in school from January of 1991 to June 0f 1995 where I learned to be comfortable with metal, stone, graphite, ink, oil, and the computer, which gives me a good range to work with.
Professionally, I've been self-employed most of my adult life other than a year with IBM and a short stint with the Navy. All of my artwork has been custom ordered and/or commissioned until recently, the result being that I've had very little, other than slides, to show the high quality of my craftsmanship. Reputation by word of mouth worked well in that realm, but isn't much help in the world of gallery art.
A few years ago I decided to break away from Gallery showing, and try to offer my art directly to the public without the 100% mark-up that most galleries charge. The internet seems like a good way to make the connections between the artist and the art appreciator.
Since I utilize a variety of media, I'm finding a means to express my inner mind, philosophies, perceptions, hopes, dreams, and fantasies, sometimes realistically and sometimes symbolically, but always with thoughtfulness. I believe art is valuable in giving the hope, faith, and beauty we all need to make life an enlightening and worthwhile experience. Art makes the world a better place. As Tom Robbins said, "In the haunted house of life, art is the only stair that doesn't creak."
