Art has always been a part of my life, beginning with early pencil sketches in elementary school. My formal training, however, began in 1967 following a serious injury while playing college football. As it turns out, it was a blessing in disguise. During my convalescence, I decided to take a figure drawing class from Professor Doxey at Westminster College. I was hooked! Professor Doxey, being pleased with my work, offered me a scholarship.
After staying at Westminster one more year, I thought it might be practical, since I had recently married, to get some commercial art training, and so enrolled at Utah Tech. I only stayed there one year. Commercial art was not for me. Besides, our family was growing, and thatÕs when I started into engineering. That also lasted one year. The next year found me working at anything to support a growing family. It wasnÕt until I became aware of the paintings of, Alvin Gittins, that I decided to buckle down and take a degree from the University of Utah, and graduated three years later with a BFA in painting and drawing.
At the time I attended the U there were amazing instructors. Alvin Gittins, Douglas Snow, Roger DeRosier as well as Angelo Caravaglia, were all instructors at that time. After graduation, I worked and painted as I could but wasnÕt ever able to make enough to support my growing family. Now that my family is grown, and the demands on my time are less, I am now able to devote myself exclusively to my painting, or nearly so.
I am a plein-air, alla-prima painter. (You have probably seen him as you drive past Liberty Park - he has become known as "that Liberty Park artist." You can find him set up all year long - either at the Downtown Farmer's Market, in the park or out on the street.)
Oil painting is my first love, but I also love to draw, and have found watercolor painting very exciting. My goal in all my paintings is to say it succinctly. If I can say it better with one stroke than two, then I prefer one. Truth resides in the general, not the particular, so I wonÕt bore you with a bunch of details in my paintings.
