Growing-up with a Father who is a professional artist and having an art studio in my basement, definitely gave me a leg up in this area of my life. In school, I would work on personal projects, one on one with my different art teachers, while the rest of the class did the group assignment. I originally chose a business program over going to art school as it seemed a more practical way to earn a living. But art was in my blood, so I balked after graduating and instead of starting a career, I moved to Yellowstone National Park to do menial work while I figured things out. Being a "local" there, where I had to walk by steaming geyser basins and wild buffalo just to get to work in the morning was surreal. As incredible as this experience was, I still had not found what it was I was looking for and I soon left to go on the road with other friends from the park, following in the footsteps of Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters, as we followed the Grateful Dead across the country.

While out there, the only camera I had with me was my Grandfather's 1950's Honeywell, which had a fixed lens. I was so broke, I only had a single roll of film to shoot. So I had to make every shot count in every way imaginable. The results were truly amazing. What I didn't realize at that time was that I was becoming an artist....in other words, I was finding myself.

Upon retuning home, I began taking art classes at a local design school, here in Chicago, where I learned my hand skills. I seemed to have a knack for figure drawing, but was unsure what my main medium would be. I loved Photography but was looking for a cutting edge art movement and medium in which to immerse myself but it was the early 1990's and the fine art world here seemed creatively stagnant, stifled and stale.

As I was attending art school, my personal, chosen fine art medium was hand-altered film. I would mount my artwork in slide mounts and then project the results behind different live bands as they performed. To create something tiny and then see that projected over an entire wall in front of a live audience was truly magical. When certain slides would suddenly sink-up with the music being played serendipitously, I would be mesmerized, as I live for "moments" in life just like this.

At this time, the Mac computer platform was in it's infancy but I immediately recognized that THIS was what I was seeking... finally, a movement, a counter culture that I could get caught up in....THE DIGITAL REVOLUTION. The commercial applications of these skills were immediately obvious and I chose to create art for business over waiting tables while I continued to do my fine art on the side.

Much of the personal artwork I have done has been photographic. I have always enjoyed being active in unspoiled wilderness and I like to hike in exotic places with my camera. Viewing nature through the camera lens helps me to focus on the subtle geometrical intiricacies most never bother to notice. I use my intuition as I walk and shoot as I seek to capture those awe inspiring moments that stop me in my tracks so that I can then return to share them with you.