I was born in a small town in Sussex, England, a town that quickly became too small for our family’s needs. The seven of us—my four sisters, my parents, and I —moved to Canada to discover a strange new world of colorful contrasts.

Our settling in the small town of Streetsville, which is nestled in the much larger, bustling city of Mississauga, allowed me to experience the best and worst of both types of lifestyles—small town and big city. A familiarity with shopkeepers, neighbors, paperboys, and strays enabled me to develop an intimate and personal relationship with my hometown and the people who shared it, while still appreciating the changes, developments, and progress that come with the greater city life.

After 28 years, 12 of which I dedicated to the study of art, I discovered “art or nothing.” Love would come and go as it will, with triumphs and disappointments always being a factor, caretaking always remaining a necessity, and the retail and service industries almost breaking my spirit; but I would maintain the ability to remake myself in my art and undo the bruises of everyday hurts.

A true creature of the heart, I find human emotions a boundless source of inspiration. I am captivated by the struggles we create within ourselves, and by our ability to reach beyond what can be seen in order to alter our perceptions of what is felt, particularly when we see something that moves us—that which cannot be explained, but that which we feel and know in our hearts as truth. I seek to illustrate the perpetual battle of the human spirit, small pleasures, great hurts, love and skepticism, games and rituals, life and the effects of loss, maturity and the innocence of youth. I seek to uncover the delicate mysteries and brutal truths that define our humanity. I am forever the cynic, forever faithful.