The abstract forms, colors and textures that abound in nature have always fascinated me, and I love creating photographs whose origins may not be readily clear. This kind of abstraction often leads to images that are calming, but also a bit mysterious. I want my work to engage viewers through color, texture and depth, and to keep their eyes moving. If they ask, “What is that?” I feel I’ve succeeded in some way. My intent is to make photographs that are peaceful and that people want to linger over every day.

My early work was with film, but my creative momentum accelerated as the tools and techniques of the digital darkroom began to mature in the late 1990s. Digital cameras went from poor to quite good in a very short

 

time. For the past twenty-five years I have worked to refine my skills and vision to bring abstract perspectives to photographs celebrating the natural world.

My first gallery exhibition featured black & white botanical images in classic black gallery frames, with white mats and glass. The show went well, but I felt the reflections in the glass detracted too much from the images themselves.

I became determined to find an archival finishing process to exhibit my work without reflections. It took a few years of trial and error, but the result works very well, and I’m able do it all myself, start to finish, in my studio.

But the unexpected surprise was seeing how three dimensional most images suddenly became. People want to touch the prints to see if they’re textured and often comment that my photographs look like paintings.

Images are everywhere and finding them out in the world is what I love most. It’s also gratifying to discover the surprises that come back in the camera. The best work is not necessarily what was planned. Turning the surprises into finished photographs is where the creative process matters most. When it works, it’s magical.

In the studio, photo by tim Anderson

Bio Highlights

  • Born in Los Angeles, grew up in New York suburbs

  • First darkroom (in a shared bathroom) at age 10

  • Devoured books about photography

  • Ansel Adams and W. Eugene Smith were early heroes

  • Studied philosophy at Lake Forest College

  • First worked in commercial photography, then film and TV production

  • Co-founded a creative marketing agency in the 1980s

  • Wilderness backpacking with a camera became a major passion in the 1990s

  • Learned from great teachers like Mac Holbert and John Paul Caponigro

  • Began to exhibit photographs in 2008

  • Moved to Santa Fe in 2019 after many years in California

The Walk to Paradise Garden W. Eugene Smith, 1946

Affiliations & Exhibitions

  • 2023: Featured exhibitor, Art San Diego, San Diego, CA

  • 2023: Featured exhibitor, Art Santa Fe, Santa Fe, NM

  • 2023: Curated exhibitor, The Other Art Fair, Dallas, TX

  • 2022: Curated exhibitor, Red Dot Miami, Miami, FL

  • 2022: Solo exhibitor, Art Expo Dallas, Dallas, TX

  • 2022: Solo exhibitor, Art San Diego, San Diego, CA

  • 2022: Featured exhibitor, Art Santa Fe, Santa Fe, NM

  • 2021: Curated exhibitor, Red Dot Miami, Miami, FL

  • 2019: Principal and Co-Owner, Plan B Arts, Santa Fe, NM

  • 2019: Curated exhibitor, Art Santa Fe, Santa Fe, NM

  • 2016-2019: Exhibitor, 10 West Gallery, Santa Barbara, CA

  • 2016-2018: Exhibitor, Gallery Los Olivos, Los Olivos, CA

  • 2014-2019: Abstract Art Collective, Santa Barbara, CA (Acting Chair 2016-2018)

  • 2015: Click, exhibition of four artists at Michael Kate Gallery, Santa Barbara

 

Art Santa Fe, 2023