My career shift from CEO of her own consulting firm to full-time artist was a direct result of these words of wisdom from my 96-year-old mother during her final hours in hospice:
"I’ve thought a lot about what I would say to you when this day came, what I might say so you'd really hear me, how I could turn these last moments together into a gift. I have one important regret to share with you, and it's not about what I did with my life, it's about what I didn't do. Over my entire lifetime I always found an excuse not to fully pursue my gifts as an artist. Work, then family, then caring for your dad, then finally losing my eyesight… always reasons that put my desire to create on the back burner. You have the same gift I had, and I've watched you shelf it just like I did. So, after 96 years on earth, here is my best advice – use your gift, develop your talent, and shift your entire focus to creating art, to letting the world know what you can do. If you don't do this now, and I mean right now, you never will. I'll be with you the whole way."
On December 1, 2019, exactly one year after my mother passed, I closed the doors to my consulting firm, set up my studio, and began painting every day. My work is a life-force that absolutely lights me up, and it’s a cherished legacy from my mother. My work has been shown in solo and group shows in the USA, France, Spain, and Austria, and has been shown in Condé Nast Media magazines Vanity Fair, GQ, Vogue House and Gardens, and World of Interiors. My paintings arein private collections in Canada, South America, Europe, and the USA.
Collectors can find my work in Peterson Contemporary Art (Bend, Oregon), Sandstone Gallery (Laguna Beach, California), J.Willott Gallery (Palm Desert, California), and Van Gogh Gallery (Madrid, Spain). I'm also represented online by Saatchi Art and Singulart.
Finally, I'm so pleased to announce that I will show my work this summer in the Festival of Arts, Laguna Beach, one of the nation’s oldest and most highly acclaimed juried fine art shows.
As a nod to my former career, I hold a Doctorate Degree in Education Policy, Leadership and Change from the University of Southern California (USC).
