People who only know my environmental work are often surprised to learn that I enjoyed a successful career as a watercolor painter & illustrator for 20+ years. I feel like I am welcoming back a long-lost part of myself by being able to share my painting work with you now.
There are 3 galleries of images to explore:
- Commercial gallery images were created specifically designed and created for licensing opportunities either by request or for speculation.
- Commissions gallery images were created specifically for an individual or organization by request, but the image may have been used in other commercial projects later.
- Personal gallery images were created for my own interest or enjoyment. They may have had commercial use after they were created but that was not why they were created.
Use the tabs above to learn more information about the works in each gallery.
You may notice that some of my works have hidden images within the larger painting. I enjoy hiding these little treats in the larger paintings. Be sure to use the full screen option mode to see these fun details.
As time permits, some of these images may become available as high-quality prints for purchase in my shop. Some may also appear on specialized products for my fans and collectors.
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All images are copyright protected and may not be used without written permission. If there is an image here that you or your company would like to license, please contact me so we can discuss your project.
The Commercial Gallery images – all watercolor media except one digital painting
- The singular animal images with “unfinished” backgrounds were actually designed to be puzzles that were cut in the shape of the large animal. This became a very popular trend in the jig-saw puzzle world and is a concept I originated. Pack Leader and Firedragon sold nearly a million copies each.
- In addition to the shaped puzzles I also created many images that were used as limited and open edition prints, on collectibles, greetings cards and numerous other product lines, some of which are still being used today.
- I was honored to illustrate two inspiring children’s books and both covers are in this gallery (without the text which gets added later)
- A good example of how the hidden images work is in the piece called The Tracker. It has over 100 wolf paw prints hidden in the image. In the detailed version, I have color coded some of the prints to help “see” how they are done. You can toggle between the two images to see where they fit.
- I also enjoyed learning some basic digital painting skills and had fun making some commercially successful products using this new (for me) medium.
- Another good example of the hidden images concept can be found in the Polar Parenting design. Originally created so that the main mother bear and the standing cub were standard sized puzzle pieces with the second cub as a separate smaller puzzle with larger pieces. This was so young children could work on the little cub while adults could work on the larger puzzle. Each cub has 6 “hidden” animal images and the mother polar bear has 25 “hidden” animals plus one human. All are native to the arctic region. How many can you find?
The Commissions Gallery images – all watercolor media
- Many of these images were commissioned by individual clients. Some were for personal use, some for gift-giving, weddings, a library endowment. Some are from the client’s dreams.
- Some images were commissioned by organizations and media companies and were deeply collaborative designs.
- Some were requested by producers of limited edition products.
- Some are “spirit guide” or “totem animal” portraits requested by the client.
The Personal Expressions Gallery images – all watercolor media
- Some of these images are a response to many wonderful adventures in international travels including Scotland and New Zealand. Also, 10 years of living in Colorado made a deep impression.
- A lifetime of personal inquiry into a wide range of esoteric and scientific studies has shaped many of the ideas behind these images.
- Some of these images were made as gifts to special people in my life.
- The image called “Spellbound” came out of a 3 year collaborative international treasure hunt that was very popular just as the internet was getting started. It was called The Merlin Mystery by Jonathan Gunson. After the hunt was over, (but before I had ever heard about the Harry Potter books) that experience prompted me to see if I could design a visual puzzle that could be solved. Members of the group proofed my puzzle and pronounced it “hard but not impossible”. There is a poem, written in code that could also be considered a “spell” of sorts that can be deciphered from the clues given in the image. The fact that the background out the window looks like Hogwarts, that the Wizard in question has a hat much like Dumbledoor’s in the movie and there is an owl that looks remarkably similar to Hedwig are all pure coincidence as I had not yet heard of Harry Potter nor anything of that world. It was a magical time indeed.
After the Merlin Mystery contest was over, Jonathan Gunson became a good friend and he is partly responsible for my turning toward land art sculptures in general and Fairy houses in particular.
