I currently live in the Sonoran Desert foothills north of Phoenix Arizona which has opened my eyes to the desert beauty. I grew up in just the opposite environment of Portland Oregon where rainy days produced lush green landscapes. I was privately tutored at the age of 12 by a renowned artist and in my high school years won several awards for my still life work and portraits in pastels in competitions which led me to receive a scholarship to Commercial Art School. However, life and childrearing took me in a different direction. The tole and decorative painting movement of...more