It was very apparent from a young age that I was not going to be an abstract artist. In my coloring books, I would carefully color within the lines and choose the correct crayon colors. I grew up surrounded by talented lovers of art, nature and animals (we always had a cat). Both of my grandmothers, Nana and Mimi, were expert seamtresses, sewing and embroidering many of the clothes my mother and siblings wore (most of them matching) and the elaborate costumes for our dance recitals. My maternal grandmother, Mimi, also spent "free" time painting designs on tableclothes using trichem liquid paints. My maternal grandfather, Pere, was a custom home builder - he built the house where I grew up in Waltham, Massachusetts (it was painted pink!). He was also an avid vegetable gardener, challenging himself to get a ripe tomato before July 4th, not easy to accomplish in Massachusetts. Pere and Mimi's yard was beautifully landscaped, full of blueberry bushes, dahlias, and the most beautiful domed rock garden. I know it was here my love for flowers and gardening took root. Pere also saved all fat dripping, orange peels and appropriate food scraps to make his own bird food. It was a thrill to see the flocks of birds eagerly devour his avian culinary concoctions, especially on the snow covered lawns in winter. Nana, who lived with us, could knit anything and made the most gorgeous outfits for our barbie dolls. My mother, Marielle, while not tending to her seven children, refinished furniture and had a decorator's eye, creating a beautiful home and was an accomplished cook. My father, Joseph, when not taking night classes and working, was a jack-of-all trades. It is no wonder that among my siblings there are two accomplished musicians, three artists, two master knitters, an expert seamstress, a master wood craftsman (made all the cabinets for his kitchen), and of course gardeners, bird and animal lovers.

My first art sale was when I was a freshman in high school. The geometry teacher bought my painting of a puma that was on display in the school's art show. I went to Westfield State University in Westfield, Mass graduating with a B.S. in Biology and a minor in Art, combining my two loves. My early career was spent in the microtechnology field creating components for space and military applications. Most of this work was done under a microscope - very detailed diode and conductor printing and wire bonding. I worked for Sylvania, RCA and MIT (in R&D at Lincoln Labs). It wasn't until 1988 that I started working as an interior decorator, using my artistic talents to pull together rooms with paint colors, fabrics, wallpaper, furniture, flooring and accessories. It was lots of fun, especially spending hours and hours looking through wallpaper and fabric books. In 2000, I needed to get back to painting, so I added custom wall finishes and murals to my decorating services, calling that part of my business Pigment of the Imagination. Fast forward to the present and I am happily creating artwork using my skill and patience for detail, incorporating themes of nature, animals and birds.