I didn’t really start my art career until 1997 when I quit my corporate job to become the artist I always felt I was.  I did however make art my whole life.

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It started when I drew an idea for the new winery that was being built in a close, open-air shopping center in my neighborhood.  I charged him $650 and gave him credit terms, $200 a month after he opened.  That lead to many more jobs, a giant restaurant with 40 foot high ceilings, many bars, and other restaurants, then the private homes.  I was even awarded a spiral staircase mural in a historic building (I have never understood how the curators would want that).  It was a sepia tone rendition of the twenty one missions built by Father Junipero Serra starting in 1769 through 1832.  I had a personal breakthrough during these paintings.  I painted a mural of the bell tower of Santa Barbara at the bottom of the stairway in color.  The bell tower must have had 8000 rocks to build it.  Each rock I painted I complained to myself that it was the worst painting of a rock, I thought the last one was bad, but this one is really awful.   I had a month off after painting this.  I have this ability to forget about what I paint after about two weeks, so I didn’t think about the really terrible 8000 rocks again.  As I rounded the corner of where the staircase was located, I was astonished at the beautiful mural and for a nano-second wondered who painted this beautiful mural.  It almost made my cry.  I decided I would stop being so very critical of my work and just go with it.   I made my living painting murals, repairing ceramics, restoring screens and old paintings then for around 10 years.  I loved it; it was interesting work.

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In 2009 my first grandson was born, gosh my career was going well, I had lots of work in interesting places and the money was good.  I thought however on my deathbed would I want to paint another mural.  Nope I would like to spend time with my son and grandson. I finished up the current jobs, packed some stuff and moved to Seeley Wisconsin where my grandson’s mother was from.  I moved February 14, 2010.  That year winter was over by April.  My neighbor took me around to show me poison oak and ivy.  Told me about getting a cowbell and a stick to walk the dogs, there were tons of bears around daily.  It was an amazing experience.  Good news I lived across the street from my grandchild, and I was his primary babysitter and got to spend his actual 1st birthday with him.  He had a party the next weekend. 

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I had something worthwhile to do in California, so I gave up my great log cabin attached to a house apartment and went back to California for eleven months.  Upon returning my son found me a really wonderful apartment in Cable - the former preschool in the bottom art of the Popelk’s home.  Cable is a wonderful place. 

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I volunteered for the Cable Natural History Museum as a docent and then as their resident on demand painter.  My best mural there was for the Lakes Alive exhibit.  I learned so very much about lakes and the animals around our lakes.  Did you know that turtles bury their heads into the mud at the bottom of a lake and breath out their butts for the winter?  Honest it’s true.  They have semi permeable membranes from which they receive oxygen.  Many art projects followed, a 20-foot mural of the life of different bees, every wall in the exhibit hall a seasonal forest, a hunters cabin. For around five years I conducted art and craft classes in the summers in the Wayside Wonderings natural play area about 3 and a half blocks from the museum proper.  Around the same time, I conducted painting classes in the Minong community building.  As well as at the Out of the Woods Winery and other private fun wine and paint together parties.

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I still paint an occasional mural, my favorite one is on the side of Art Beat. There are a couple of ones high up on 7th street in Saint Paul, complete inside the Seeley vet’s bathroom, I think that was the first one I did in the area. 

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Last year my very good friend Nancy moved here from California, and we were lucky enough to rent the gorgeous apartment above the Northwoods Humane Society even though I was sad to give up the Cable apartment.  I love my life, it is filled with art, all day, every day if I choose.  I love the look of snow, I love Hayward, I love our lakes, even though I do not go in them (remember all the knowledge I got from painting Lakes Alive!) The opportunity to have a studio space is miraculous and wonderful.  If it’s art I do it.  

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Art repair - ask for Donna in the back studio at Art Beat.  Sculpture,  paintings, frames, asian screen repairs, and some ceramics.  Lots of experience.  I once put together a 200 piece broken ceramic Christmas tree, including manufacturer ingredients and some missing parts.   I've also restored a 200 year old Buddhist statue for a Buddhist monastery.