I have been an artist as far back as I can remember. It has always been natural for me to create. My girlhood was filled with making dolls, designing paper dolls and drawing and painting the human form. Whether I had a colored pencil, brush, needle and thread, blob of clay or camera in hand, I wasn’t happy unless I was bringing someone to life.
In my early 20’s, I embarked on my career as a professional illustrator. It wasn’t long before I realized I was a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. I found out my innate love of drawing real children was taboo. Art director after art director informed me that although I was talented, my art was “too real”. They told me to stylize my children to look like the “Gerber baby”. That way it would be universally relatable. Initially infuriated, I was left totally discouraged by their advice. I realized I was not capable of drawing images that were not in my heart. I decided to continue to draw from my internal impulses rather than create work to fill a market. That decision allowed me to only work sporadically with giftware companies. I put my energies into being a mom and
continued to paint portrait commissions when they arose.
As time went on, the culture evolved, and we became a society that honors diversity. I welcomed the change. No longer was it acceptable to include only idealized images of children in illustrations. The world finally was catching up to what I had known all along — to treasure our uniqueness. Art directors began calling on me because I could draw real children of different ethnicities. What was once a handicap was now an asset.
I began receiving commissions to illustrate children’s books, greeting cards, limited edition prints, and paper dolls. To date some of my clients include: Ashton Drake Galleries, Dover Publications, Beyond Words Books, Walt Disney World, Cricket Magazine, and Betsy McCall paper dolls for McCall’s Magazine.
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My work even found its way into the White House where my portrait of Chelsea Clinton hung in the former First Lady's private study. I am especially proud that Oprah Winfrey purchased a portrait I drew of her as a little girl. When she featured the portrait on her 2000 Favorite Things Show, it was the icing on the cake for me. I am thrilled to be introducing my very own line of cards, Everyday Angel Cards. They are dedicated to the ordinary kids who have crossed my path. It is my hope that they uplift and heal both the giver and receiver of them.