About The Artist

What I love most about painting is how it makes me focus on my environment, even when I'm not painting at that moment. Unremarkable activities like a drive down the freeway become exciting when I try to figure out how I'd paint the light on the trees, the reflections in the cars, the color of the mountains. I paint almost exclusively on location, and the hours spent completely absorbed in the scene make it a memory that stays vivid long after I finish the painting. It has enriched my life tremendously.

Currently, I'm working mostly in pastels, and I'm predominantly painting landscapes. I had been sketching for several years when my sister Lily gave me a set of pastels and urged me to branch out into color. I liked using them, especially after my friend Patti Flynn gave me a few lessons and encouraged me to keep going. I enjoyed the process, but it was when I started taking Adult Education classes that what had been just a diversion from my work as an engineer turned into a consuming passion. I look forward to pursuing it for the rest of my life.

My husband, Gerry Winant, paints in oils, and we treasure the time we spend painting outdoors together.

Background

I was born in Antwerp, Belgium in 1950 and lived there until I was 17. At that time, my parents moved our family to Santa Barbara. I never left.

Education

University of California, Santa Barbara : Ph.D. Physics, 1979

Santa Barbara Adult Education: Plein Air and Figure Drawing classes.  Composition study with Jim Armstrong.

Workshops: Chris Chapman, Glenna Hartmann, Michael Drury, Thomas Van Stein, Marcia Burtt, Mark Kerckhoff, Clark Mitchell, Richard Schloss, Sally Strand, Albert Handell, Stanley Goldstein, Jean LeGassick, Randall Sexton, Richard McKinley, Arturo Tello, Frank Serrano.

Affiliations

Pastel Society of America (Signature Member), The Oak Group, California Art Club (Artist Member), Pastel Society of the West Coast (Distinguished Pastelist), Santa Barbara Art Association, Goleta Valley Art Association, SCAPE.