Artist's Statement

On August 16, 1998, I discovered that my muse lives inside a four-color ballpoint pen and on a 3.5 by 4.75 inch sketchpad. My sketch titled Candace Holding Ice Cream Cone was a turning point in my creative career.

As with many artists, I've been drawing and creating all my life. However, as the responsibilities of adulthood set in, I would go months without doing anything creative. I was in a rut. Then, on that August day, I realized that, with my little sketch pad and pen, I could create art almost anywhere: in coffee shops, in hospital waiting rooms, at bus stops, and at the kitchen table. Almost anywhere! Also, with the self-imposed, limited space on the page, I didn't need to set aside hours and hours to create art. I could create something in as little as fifteen minutes.

As cliché as it may sound, drawing in these little sketchpads has unlocked my creativity. Sketching in these pads has become my passion. I'm at a loss when I do not have one of these sketch pads and my pen within reach. I need to sketch daily.

Many of these sketch book pieces stand on their own as pieces of art, such as one titled Eddie Piano , which I gave to a good friend. Some may never see the light of day. However, many, many more become the starting point of much bigger projects. Ideas from my sketchpads allowed me to discover graphite, pastels, charcoal, acrylics, collage, china markers, and even poetry. Larger paintings, drawings and murals have evolved from these little pictures.

These days I have my own studio space. While the projects get larger and more exciting I still continue to enter into the comfort zone of my 3.5 by 4.75 inch sketchpad with my four-color ballpoint pen.