Infected by Art Book - Volume 13

When I was fifteen years old, a family friend sent my mother a postcard with a Kay Nielsen illustration from East of the Sun, West of the Moon on it. It was love at first sight. I had always drawn and painted – usually horses – but now my most important goal was to evoke a sense of magic on paper. A year later, I won a major prize in a national poster contest, but even then, I still planned on becoming a lawyer. Encouraged by my high school art teacher, I began to sell my watercolor paintings and drawings at local art fairs, and it was then that I began to seriously consider art as a career. I went to three universities (Boston University, Central Washington University, and the University of Washington) and three majors before settling down to get a B.A. in art history in the regulation four years. It helped that all my majors had been related to art. After college, I supported myself as a file clerk and administrative assistant at a law firm, and then as a systems operator at an insurance company. During this time, I started going to science fiction conventions and showing in the conventions’ art shows. This led to jobs working for magazines such as Cricket, and for gaming companies such as Iron Crown Enterprises and Wizards of the Coast. I’ve also illustrated a childrens’ book, Petronella, by Jay Williams, for Moon Mountain Publishing. Currently, I paint watercolors on commission as well as for myself, and work as a consulting/contracting designer and technical illustrator. I live in West Seattle. In my spare time, I enjoy reading fantasy and science fiction, walking in the neighborhood, and petting with the household cats