The present: I live in a smallish house with two dogs, two hamsters, two boys, and one husband. I read voraciously (manga, fantasy, and non-fiction--science and history), play role playing (White Wolf and D&D) and video games (Mush, Zelda and The Sims), ride horses (when I have one, which I don't right now), and sew costumes (1840 - 1870 and SCA).

The past: Although I'm only 34, can't sum up my life in a reasonable space. I feel sometimes like I've had twenty or so different lives. As a child, my family moved frequently--I went to thirteen different schools in twelve years. The high points were living in a Kilmarnock, Virginia plantation mansion, a working cattle and quarter horse farm, and Gushikawa, Okinawa, Japan. I am still very close to my family. Moving a lot and living through tragedies together force you to have your siblings and parents as your best friends.

I got married way too young, to a very interesting man who has continued my parents' tradition of re-inventing himself (and thus the rest of our little family) on a regular basis. He was a writer when we got married (science fiction and fantasy, with a few short stories published and several awards won), while I was working on a BFA at Brigham Young University. For a few years, I did freelance illustrations for a number of small press magazines and children's books, and I tried to get a comic book published. I worked a couple years after that restoring photographs for a genealogy library. Then, shortly after our oldest son was born, I got a job as an artist in the video game industry. I worked there for eight years.

In 2003, I decided to stay home with my boys and try to make a living as a traditional-media artist again. My husband packed us up and moved us cross-country to a secret military base where he is currently employed testing army equipment.

As an artist: Before college, I mostly used pencils and Prismacolor colored pencils. I drew a lot of horses, and copied the paintings of my idols--Mikimoto, the Pre-Raphaelites, Larry Elmore, Clyde Caldwell (and, basically, the whole rest of the D&D art team of the '80s). I was very fortunate that both my parents are hobby artists, and my senior year art teacher, Dorie Parsons, encouraged me to pursue a career in art.

I went to Brigham Young University, and studied Illustration. A so-so teacher introduced me to watercolors, and then a really good teacher, Richard Hull, taught me how to use acrylics transparently to imitate watercolors. He taught me to really love colors, and transparent mediums. At the time, I thought I wanted to be a freelance children's book illustrator.

After school, I discovered that actually, the highly competitive children's illustration racket was not my cup of tea. A good friend of mine, Wendy Anderson, and I formed "Chicas Ink" and tried to get a comic book published. I also tried to get illustration work in the RPG world. Both attempts never got much above the "semi-pro" level, and in the end, I took a full time job doing artwork for video games.

I didn't really pick up a brush again for about eight years. Then, the art director where I was working, Don Seegmiller, encouraged me to get back to painting. I switched from acrylics to watercolors, seeking richer colors. Last year, on the advice of April Lee, I switched from tube watercolors to pan colors.

I sketch a lot. I'm one of those people who cannot stand to be still, and any time I have to sit down for any length of time, I sketch. I fill about one sketchbook every two years now. When I was working outside my home, I filled one every few months.

To see how I work, go to my Works in Progress page, and "watch" me finish a painting.

(My father is, among other things, a photographer. Playing with his props and costumes is fun!!)