My dad would always remind me to “learn something new” before I left for school as a kid, and it has forever shaped how I approach my daily life and my art. I am always looking to learn about a new medium, or try a new technique, while continuing to hone my artistic style.

Growing up, I never really thought of myself as an artist and have no formal training but there is a long line of artists in my family, past and present, whom I’ve been able to look up to. A great-grandfather who painted to preserve the memory of his homeland in Norway, an aunt whose art has always lovingly graced the walls of my homes, not to mention a great-aunt who started weaving “late in life” at the age of 50 but then lived to be 102. The lesson here is that it’s never too late to try your hand at something new. I discovered a penchant for calligraphy in my early 20s, a desire to paint in my early 30s, and I’ve been dabbling in various mediums ever since. My studio practice frequently involves watercolors, dip pen + ink, acrylics and collage in addition to flirting with oils recently - even mixing my own paints using natural earth pigments. Always learning, indeed.

My three greatest sources of inspiration:

• Annual summertime road trips - from the west coast, through the fields, plains, and rolling hills of the Midwest, all the way to our family lake cottage in Northern Minnesota - have allowed me to squirrel away stunning landscapes in my mind for future paintings.

• I spent a handful of years studying at Western Washington University, earning a degree in Theatre Arts in 2011. Although I left Bellingham nearly a decade ago, the Pacific Northwest still shows up often in my work and serves as a constant source of inspiration.

• In 2018, my husband and I (along with our ridiculously cute dog, Darwin) moved into a house with a picture window that looks out onto the front range of the Colorado Rocky Mountains and if you sit on the couch at just the right angle, all you can see is sky. It’s magic, I tell you. Pure magic.

When I’m not making a mess in my studio (and promptly tidying up to appease my Virgo nature), you might find me chasing wild storm clouds or a particularly promising sunset. Landscapes, earth tones, and big skies inhabit both my work and my heart.

Photo by Emily Rose Rosing

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