About
My love of art began at an early age in Scranton, PA. I loved drawing and would copy cartoons from comic books and newspapers. A wonderful teacher by the name of Terrance Gallagher and a childhood friend inspired me to enroll in art classes offered by the Everhart Museum. My interest in painting continued throughout high school. However, somewhere between the passion of becoming a painter and the desire to cling to the known, I second guessed myself by questioning whether art was a realistic choice. So I reluctantly put art on hold and pursued a rewarding career in public service and consulting in the private sector, after graduating with a Bachelors of Science degree from the University of Richmond in Virginia.
In mid-career at the gentle nudging of my wife, Kathleen, I enrolled and studied painting at the University of Maryland. While there I coincidentally met William B. Lawrence, a nationally known painter and sought after teacher. Lawrence was a major source of influence and inspiration, as he continually challenged me to go beyond the urge to paint like him or others and to find my own motif. I owe a great deal of credit to him for my growth as a painter.
My works are held in collections across the United States, and I have had solo exhibitions at the United States Department of Treasury and the Telecommunications Industry Association. I have also participated in several group shows, including the Strathmore in North Bethesda, the Capital Arts Network in Rockville, MD, the Goldman Art Gallery in North Bethesda and the Susan Calloway Fine Arts Gallery in Georgetown, DC.
While trained in realism, I now derive my passion from a non-objective language that combines the clear composition of geometric abstraction with the intense color and bold, unitary forms of color field painting. Whether this style of painting is in or out of favor has nothing to do with the trajectory of my work. Creating something from nothing that I haven't seen before is what makes painting endlessly challenging. And that is the reason I do it.