The Journey Collection
An artistic walk through time
"Tell me, what do you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
Mary Oliver
The Journey Collection
This collection is curated from 15 years worth of art, following the artistic journey from college, through newly married life, and into motherhood and beyond.
Scroll down to view the different sections of the Journey Collection, read each section's story, and click the individual paintings to read their significance.
College Era
These paintings are from my Junior and Senior year as a Two Dimensional Studio Art major. As a student, I had no real style or focus (which is normal for students), I just knew I loved portraits and I loved to create art.
But even without a real focus, you can trace the very beginnings of ideas and imagery that I use to this day!
Click each painting to read their stories
Ocean Period
After graduating college and getting married, we moved to the Virginia Beach area. I worked full-time as a professional
cleaner, scrubbing mud out of post-construction tubs, leaning out of third story windows, trying to vacuum newly installed carpet in homes without air conditioning, in the middle of summer.
You can imagine I spent a lot of time thinking about that beach nearby!
The ocean and its inhabitants were a huge source of inspiration and calm to me during a time when I couldn't do a
lot of painting, but loved every moment that I could.
Click each painting below to read more!
Fantastical Period
My husband graduated from his post-grad studies (the reason we had moved to VA), and we excitedly moved to MD to help my parents with their brand-new church plant. My hubby got an office job, and I was suddenly free to fully pursue my dream; painting!
But what to paint? We didn't live near the ocean anymore, and I didn't know what people in Maryland were in to (hint, it's crabs). I was still doing a lot of digital freelance work, but now had time to experiment and play. I instantly went back to my first loves; fantasy and story-telling.
I wondered, how could I paint portraits while also giving them deeper meaning? The paintings below were born!
At the same time, I was also painting wedding bouquet commissions, which had a huge influence on my art going forward.
I don't have any of those paintings to sell in the collection, so I've opened up a few commission spots!
Click each painting below to read more!
The Silhouettes
During the time I was painting these pieces, we had moved into our very first home and I was pregnant with our first child. I was still doing a lot of experimenting, and felt I hadn't found my voice or style in a clear way. I was always searching for a way to incorporate my love of portraits while stretching myself to try other subject matter.
The silhouettes came out of this experimentation, and it was through these pieces that I discovered my love of exploring the Inner World.
Dive into the Silhouettes to find out their stories!
Click each painting below to read more!
Flower Language
Period
These paintings are where everything started to come together for me. I had always loved the Victorian Language of Flowers (secret spy codes? Yes please!), and had the idea to use them to tell wordless stories in my paintings.
The paintings below were inspired by my experiences as a new mother, as well as my deep desire to communicate deeper messages through my paintings.
Each painting has a description of the flowers used and their meanings.
Click each painting below to read more!
The Journey Collection
Shop the full collection below!
Scroll up to see the individual periods of the Journey Collection, and read the timeline stories.