ABOUT THE ARTIST

My passion for art began at an early age, and in 2004 I accepted an Art scholarship to Carson Newman College in East TN. I later changed majors and graduated with a Business Management/Marketing degree in 2008. With the economy facing a financial crisis, I took a job as a Flight Attendant (on a whim), opting to try out a "fun" job for 2-3 years until the market restored itself. I met my husband Brandon in 2011 and, as only God himself can orchestrate, his mother, Teresa, was an art teacher and very talented artist. She introduced me to colored pencil art, and its practicalness impressed me immediately. It wasn't messy. I could start or stop whenever I needed. And I could carry it anywhere, which made it the perfect medium for me. I continued flying for a total of 13 years, 50 states, and 27 countries - because traveling has a way of putting its roots in your heart. The pandemic in 2020 led to an unexpected hiatus from flying...and subsequently a chance for me to pursue art as a career. I began commissioned work including pet portraits, sold prints of originals I'd drawn, and was honored when Orvis Pursell offered to sell my art in their store. As an avid sportswoman and outdoor enthusiast, I've donated to groups such as Quail Forever, Pheasants Forever, Ruffed Grouse/American Woodcock Society, Ducks Unlimited, Hunters for the Hungry, Old Hemlock Foundation, Sportsmen & Businessmen's Charitable Organization, Great Smoky Mountain Association, Henry's Fork Foundation, and the National Bird Dog Musuem. My hobbies include fly-fishing, wingshooting, deer hunting, skiing, backpacking, sewing, baking, and working on my family's Angus cattle farm in Middle TN. In 2019 we brought home our first bird dog, "Ollie", a Ryman type English Setter from October Setters in Idaho. During his first two seasons we hunted him on public lands in MT, KS, SC, AL, NC, KY and TN for quail, ruffed grouse, sharptail grouse, woodcock, pheasant, prairie chickens, and hungarian partridge. Upland hunting has enriched my life and influences much of my work.