BIO

Growing up in Nebraska, I developed an appreciation for wide open spaces and solitary objects. Art, though, didn’t take hold of me until I was in my 30’s after I spent nearly a decade teaching high school. Photography had always been an important part of my life, and in fact I was part of the production of the Guiness Book of World Records' largest photograph, but I knew it was nothing more than dabbling. It was time to get serious, and thus, grad school.

In 2001 I enrolled at Cranbrook Academy of Art to study under Carl Toth, a unique artist who specialized in philosophy and the transformation of what photography could be. Here I learned the practice of being an artist. It was also here that I discovered the joys of color photography, both film and digital, as well as the joys of staging my own images. In the summers I worked as a manager at the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops for three seasons which developed a broad technical skill.

Once I graduated, I felt at home in Detroit and chose to stay. I developed  the Cranbrook Summer Art Institute, which offered art classes to teenagers from all over the world. I also became an adjunct professor, with the longest running stints at Lawrence Technological University and Oakland Community College.  Part of the allure of Detroit is the affordability and available space. Thus, I have organized a non-profit art group called Hatch Art . We purchased a former police station/ jail/ convent and converted it into an art center.

I currently live in Hamtramck, an immigrant community within the loving arms of Detroit. There isn't a more diverse city in the US.

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