Bio

I take my name from my grandmother—a name that signifies origin and inheritance; the root beneath the rock.

I have been painting since I could hold a brush. My family supported my creativity and I was encouraged to make art a part of my daily life. My mother, an artist, was an important influence, and the natural world was my primary teacher. As a child, I had the freedom to paint expansively—transforming walls into murals and living spaces into informal galleries. By adolescence, I was receiving commissions.

My professional path unfolded outside the studio. I worked in local television in Ohio and Boston, collaborating with highly creative teams, before transitioning to the nonprofit sector in New York, where mission-driven work and collective purpose shaped my understanding of storytelling and impact. Throughout these years, painting remained an undercurrent rather than a centerpiece.

The early months of the COVID pandemic marked a turning point. Spending long hours outdoors, I observed the blooming and vitality of the natural world—hawks, herons, woodpeckers, trees—continuing to thrive amid global stillness. This period catalyzed a shift in my visual language, giving rise to yellow skies and purple trees. Landscapes that moved beyond representation toward states of transition and encounter. It was during this time that I committed to keeping art at the center of my life.

Now based in Massachusetts, I actively paint and exhibit my work, and continue to learn from accomplished artists including Kathleen Speranza, Ruth Odile, Peter Hocking, Larry Moore, Corey Whisson, Lynne Adams, Marlene Rye, and others.

I currently divide my time between studio practice and my work at the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. Both worlds inform my perspective: one rooted in service and collective responsibility, the other in attention, presence, and relationship with the natural world. Through my paintings, I explore the interconnection and kinship between humans and the natural systems that sustain us. We are nature, after all. We are one.