Places
Travel is one of life's greatest gifts, and I find that my travel paint set is just as important as my passport. Many of these pieces are created en plein air, allowing me to directly absorb and translate the essence of a location to paper or canvas. This collection includes impressions of places that hold personal meaning to me. I'm driven to capture the specific atmosphere, light, and elements that make a place unforgettable. By creating a still of a memory, I feel it helps to keep the place vivid and easily available to “visit” again.
Capturing Memories as Locations
Allegheny Summer View | Oil on 16 inch diameter round canvas | View from childhood, the perfect time of day in summer, just after swimming.
My Place In Iceland | Watercolor 4x6 inch | Depicting the desire to adapt, to blend in, and my peace and comfort of my adoptive home.
Song of the Siren | White charcoal on black paper 9x12 inches | Inspired by Amen Dunes' version of the song "Song to the Siren" and Alexander McQueen's Oyster dress.
Þingvellir picnic view | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Sketching en plein air in Þingvellir National Park, Iceland. My fingers nearly froze!
Tjörnin In The Rain | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Sketching in all weather in central Reykjavik, part of my route to get cinnamon buns (snúður).
Yosemite Falls | Oil on canvas 30x40 inches | Capturing the essence of Yosemite's grandeur in a large-scale piece.
Jökulsárlón | Oil on canvas 30x40 inches | 10 hours on the road chipped down to one frame of Iceland's ethereal glacier lagoon.
Abandoned House In Old Harbor | Collage, newspaper 9x12 inch | A house made up of scraps, both in reality and as art. I love abandoned places and piecing together the stories they may hold.
Einar Jónsson sculpture garden| Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Soaking up the beautiful weather by sketching in the little secret garden near the foot of Hallgrímskirkja.
Kirkjufellsfoss | Oil on canvas 30x40 inches | Impression of Snaefellsnes Peninsula's "Church Mountain Falls" in Iceland after hiking the edge of the waterfall.
Reykjavik Harbor | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Serene scene of downtown Reykjavik's Old Harbour. Painting marinas much like my grandmommy before me.
Black sands of Vík | White charcoal on black paper 9x12 inches | Both deadly and beautiful, chaotic and serene. A place that makes you see from many perspectives while trusting that each can be right, to go with the flow . I associated this image with the Icelandic saying "Kemur Allt Með Kalda Vatninu" ("It all comes with the cold water"), or things will eventually fall into place.
The coral house near Karastigur | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Coffee shop view of the classically Nordic houses of Reykjavik.
View from the kitchen window, Hringbraut 115 | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Having my Cheerios in the morning to a view of the North Atlantic, Esja, and local art.
Castle view, Assisi | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Natural framing to a perfect view, overlooking Assisi, Italy.
San Cataldo, Esanatoglia | Gouache in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | View of the summit after a winter hike through Italian forests, watching for wild boars and wolves.
Stofan | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | A cozy hideaway from the Icelandic wind, and my first solo beer.
Þingvellir path | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | A very cold day spent exploring Þingvellir National Park, site of the ancient Icelandic parliament, Alþing.
Iðnó | Watercolor and Micron in 3.5x5.5 inch Handbook | Culture house in downtown Reykjavik where many hangouts, concerts, art experiences and dances were had with friends.