
Originally from Chicago, I studied art and photography at a number of institutions. I began as a design major at Northern Illinois University. Following a vacation in San Francisco one particularly cold and snowy winter the lure of a the ocean and a warmer, more festive environment called. Answering that call, I packed the car with a few boxes and a very annoyed Siamese cat and hit the road. Finishing my degree at UC Berkeley, I worked in painting, drawing and photography separately for years. However, I experienced a real "Ah-hah!" moment when I took a class in digital printmaking. I could see the potential for combining the flexibility of being able to push and play with the paint medium with the immediacy that photography offered.