“I’ve always been an artist but I never believed I could actually create for a living. Although I was accepted into the Fine Art program at the Fashion Institute of Technology, believing that I could not survive as a fine artist, I chose instead to study Display & Exhibit Design. After graduation, I began a career in retail as a visual merchandiser. Later, I tried my hand as a floral and holiday display designer and even had a brief stint as real estate agent. I went back to retail and eventually worked my way around the fashion industry until I landed a job working in a high-end wholesale children’s fashion showroom as a brand manager. Although I loved working with fashion and people, I was never fulfilled in any job. I needed to live a more creative life; I needed to create, I needed to paint. I decided to go back to school and earned a BA in Visual Art from Empire State College where I studied one on one with established painters, including Jill Moser (look her up – you won’t be disappointed!). I planned on earning my masters in Art Education, but mid way through my studies, I became pregnant with my now 3 year old daughter. My doctor advised me to refrain from work and school due to a high-risk condition. It was at this time that I began to research ways in which to sell my art online. After all, I had piles of work just laying around collecting dust and I was desperate for income. I had nothing to lose so I began selling on Etsy and POD sites like society6. After a short time, I started to see success, selling my work on products and being accepted as an artist on Deny Designs. In the last three years, I have steadily built my business and feel as if I am living a dream come true. I never thought I could make a good living doing what I love. But I am finding that the more ‘me’ I am in my art and life, the more successful I become. It sounds cliche, but it is true. I spent so much time trying to be whatever I ‘wanted’ to be, whatever I thought would make me successful, when really I should have been following my heart and being who I am all along. I am a painter with a passion for pattern. It’s who I am so it’s who I am choosing to be.”
