Patients to Paintings

As a retired registered nurse, I paint for fun and relaxation. Going into my studio and putting on my uniform, now a painter's smock, I smile as I look at the blank piece of board from my local hardware store. I visualize what the finished product will look like after being massaged with brushes and oils. After 38 years of nursing people back to health, I now apply that care and tender touch to my paintings. Each painting is special, just like my patients were, with its own special needs. I have to step back to study and diagnose what would bring more beauty to the piece - a little stroke of color here or a bold push of texture there. And when it's finally “well”, I take joy in sending it out into the world.

No, I don't have any degrees in art but I continually seek to improve my work by taking workshops and studying under nationally known artists such as Charles Gruppe, Caroline Jasper, Robert Hoffman, Cindy Overall, Lori Putnam, Roger Dale Brown, and Dominic Vignola. Just as with the continuing education courses I took in nursing, each class gives me wonderful new ideas and techniques.

I paint exclusively with oils on board or canvas. I tried watercolors and acrylics but they just don't have the creaminess and richness that I feel with oils. Oils dry very slowly so I can take my time and not feel rushed which is important to us retirees! Plus, oils are very forgiving - if I don't like something I've done or my mood changes, I can just paint right over it. A gal has a right to change her mind!