My paintings are an expression of the beauty and magic I see in Grand Canyon, the surrounding Colorado Plateau and in our everyday experiences. I have come to realize that the cycles and patterns of the natural world can serve as a reflection for aspects of our own day to day living and relationships. I believe that nature can teach us how to navigate more gracefully through our own seasons and rapids of human experience. After all, we are nature too! This is one of many messages I attempt to convey through my art. When art is able to articulate true insight and wisdom, it becomes a powerful tool. It can help to open our minds and hearts to different perspectives, ideas, emotions and help us to see that we and all living things are connected on a very fundamental level.
I have been practicing to be an artist since childhood and studied a bit of Westernized art education through college. I started as a Freshman at UofA then eventually transferred to NAU. My higher education also led me into fields of geology, ethnobotany, music, graphic design and wilderness medicine. My connection to and observations of nature have been primarily fostered and nurtured by time spent living and working in Grand Canyon. I have worked as a professional river guide for Arizona River Runners since 1997. As life experience grows and expands, my inspiration also grows and expands. I am now exploring other subject matters, including current affairs, archetypal imagery and the collective evolving consciousness.
The big adventure now, is the journey inward. It’s the journey towards true relationship with each other and the planet. My responsibility as an artist and as a guide is to live life with intention, to pay attention and to help bring into this world a new way of seeing. My home and art studio are in Flagstaff, AZ.