A note from the artist:

Bright color and sparkling light abound in the tropical paradise of Puerto Vallarta where I have mostly lived since 1984. Mexico has been the source of many images for my paintings as well as the culture that nurtures me as an artist.

I paint with a limited palette, (permanent rose, quincacridone yellow, aureolin, viridian, cobalt, Winsor blue, and ultramarine deep) using a grisaille method ie. a purple underpainting for darker values and color with transparent color applied where there is no purple and darker versions of the local color over the purple. I paint the lightest washes first so that they remain clean.

My drawing is done on vellum with a grid showing through underneath. The same grid is laid over the photo (smaller but proportionate to the paper-size grid). The finished drawing is transferred to the watercolor paper with graphite paper.

The photography for my paintings is a primary element in my process. I think it is where my background and preference for contour drawing meets with the two-dimensionality of the photo. As a studio painter I am interested in the patterns that color and shape make on the flat surface of the paper.