Journal

As a fine art photographer and upstream media creator, I explore visual and poetic responses grounded in memory, identity, and metaphysical reflection. Raised as an identical twin with two younger twin sisters in a rural suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, my work functions as a form of ongoing prayer—memorializing personal heritage while examining the tension between divinity, unity, and duality.

Through hybrid analog-digital processes, I frame layered metaphors and allegories, contrasting assumed reality with emotional undercurrents and latent memory. My imagery navigates the interplay between destruction and transformation, evoking the inner and outer worlds we collectively inhabit.

Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, I developed interests in drawing and painting at a young age in the mid-60s. Following high school and a tentative start in the ad and business worlds, I began night studies at the Art Academy of Cincinnati in the early ’70s, when it was affiliated and physically connected to the Cincinnati Art Museum.

Earning acceptance to the Art Academy full time was my dream realized several years after graduating from high school- through a stringent portfolio reviw and only 20 or so accepted as incoming students per year. At that time in the mid-70s, they offered a diploma. This fueled my completion in undergrad studies at Wright State University, School of Fine and Performing Arts with concentration in Printmaking and Photography, where I graduated magna cum laude and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. I think this was most likely one of the most grueling yet rewarding personal achievements to date.

Immediately after undergrad studies, I pursued postgraduate studies and accepted the offer from the University of California, Irvine, Clair Trevor School of the Arts, leading to a Master of Fine Arts degree. As an incoming student, I was awarded the Regents Fellowship and Teaching Assistantship, Printmaking Department for the second year. It was a tumultuous time, personally. Lots of transition for a young adult. But survive and thrive was my approach to entering the real world.

I grew up in idyllic midwest suburbia. Born and raised a Methodist, when I reached my high school graduation, the world was in the midst of the hippie generation. I embraced it. Probably embraced it a little too much. Eventually, I settled down and got serious with my education and work.

What appeals to me visually seems to continually stem from that rebellious expression countered with the sobering contemplation of my midwest surroundings. I resonate with finding beauty in this non-conformist reality.

Progressive technologies, as they apply to self-expression, present a challenging dichotomy to what I originally envisioned as the true fine artist. There is still a division between my fine art photography and the generative art work. Yet I do provide notification on the latter works when I feel these newer technologies provide added value in an ideally collaborative environment.

There is still stigma attached in some circles as to the validity of art making without exclusively hands-on methodologies. From progressing through analog to digital, however, I relate to experimental ideation and production, along with the process that is inherent in this ever-expanding genre.

My focus is now retracing memory and presenting my responses through social forums and exhibition opportunities.