ABOUT THE ARTIST


Creating art is a much like breathing to me - something I just have to.  My feet don't touch the ground and I feel like I am airborne when I am being creative.


My Artist Statement


As an art teacher it has served me well to use multiple mediums and a range of styles.  I've been a successful, studio artist all my life and have developed a number of concentrations and portfolios over the years but no style or subject matter felt true, felt like it was me or really stuck.

I love teaching and I love being a working artist.  I find that both careers work beautifully together and push my art.  I teach advanced and beginning high school students so I am always reaching for new techniques, trends and assignments that will engage my classes.  I don't believe I would have discovered drawing on the pages from old dictionary pages if I wasn't a teacher.  It fits perfectly to use a teaching tool to create my art.

I'm not a youngster.  I love to travel, I love theater and film.  I love anything with a story and a history.  I believe these interests and my “maturity” are reflected in my work.

My most recent, artistic pursuit are drawings on pages from discarded dictionaries. These simple little drawings resemble vintage illustrations from my childhood and I like to think my subjects have a story  a narrative.  Many of the subjects used in my work are keepsakes or remembrances from our family farm established over a hundred years ago on the Oklahoma prairie.  I capture my subjects on 30-150 year old, dictionaries which are fragile and require multiple mediums to develop.  I rescue these books from libraries around the country and repurpose them so the pages regain their importance.  I have also developed a method of reproducing dictionary pages on equally old parchment paper which enables me to work larger than typical book sizes.

I believe I've found my voice and artwork which best defines who I am and what I care about.  It has been exciting to see patrons respond to these drawings.  Something familiar, comfortable and personal seems to resonate.



MY RESUME & SHOW SCHEDULE

EDUCATION
Southwestern Oklahoma State University
Bachelors in Graphic Art  May 1979
Sum ma cum Laude

WORK EXPERIENCE
Advanced Placement & Beginning 2-D Art Educator
Guymon Public Schools                                    2000-Present

Fundamentals & Art History Adjunct Educator
Oklahoma Panhandle State University              1998-2000

Owner & Studio Artist/Private Educator
Flying Shoes Art Studio                 1979-Present
Etsy Shop  www.Etsy.com/shop/flyingshoes

Designer & Artist
Annabelle Stamps - Australia   www.annabellestamps.com    Present

Administrator/CEO/Counselor
Next Step Network Drug Treatment Center         1989-1999

Career & Employment Counselor
Oklahoma Economic Development Association      1985-1988

Dispatcher/Patrol
Weatherford Oklahoma Police Department 1978-1979

REPRESENTATION

WOW! Gallery http://wowgallerysantafe.com/
Santa Fe, New Mexico  January 2014 - Present

Earthen Vessel Gallery http://earthenvessel.com/
Durango, Colorado     August 2014 - Present

All Fired Up Art Gallery
Guymon, Oklahoma Sept.1995 - Present

El Sol Gallery
San Antonio, Texas June 2005 - Aug. 2009


SHOWS & FESTIVALS

Oklahoma City Festival of the Arts (Juried Show)
Oklahoma City, OK                                  April 2015

Rio Grand Holiday Arts & Crafts Festival (Juried Show)
Albuquerque, NM                                      November 2014

Crested Butte Festival of The Arts (Juried Show)
Crested Butte, CO                                     August 2014

Berkshires Art Festival (Juried Show)
Great Barrington, MA                                 July 2014

Paseo Festival of the Arts (Juried Show)
Paseo Arts District, Oklahoma City, OK      May 2014

Oklahoma City Festival of the Arts (Juried Show)
Oklahoma City, OK                                    April 2014

Rio Grande Holiday Arts & Crafts Festival (Juried Show)
Albuquerque, NM                                         November 2013

Salida River Arts Festival (Juried Show)
Salida, CO                                                      August 2013

Paseo Festival of the Arts (Juried Show)
Paseo Arts District, Oklahoma City, OK May 2013

Solo Show
Wild Horse Art Gallery, Guymon, Oklahoma Oct. 2012

Solo Show
Trading Post Gallery, Taos, New Mexico     Summer 2011

Solo Show
OHMS Gallery, Amarillo, Texas June-July 2010

Sunflower Art Festival Guymon, Oklahoma
                                                                June 2013
                                                                June 2012
June 2010
June 2009


Pumpkin Patch Art Festival Fall 2011, 2012

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Best of Show Sunflower Art Festival 2009, 2010

Oklahoma Centennial Artist 2005 & 2007

Oklahoma Artist in Residence
Oklahoma State Arts Council 1990-1995

PRIVATE COLLECTIONS

Oklahoma Historical Society Museum  Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Cimarron Historical Museum  Boise City, Oklahoma
National Pork Producers Council  Washington, D.C.




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