SPS Member Profile

I am originally from the Midwest. I love nature, antiques, gardening, golfing and creating. After graduating from Purdue University with a degree in Interior Design, I moved to Colorado. There I met my husband, Tom, and we had two lovely daughters. Tom and I now split our time between Colorado and Arizona. It is pure joy to paint with the medium of soft pastels - The color and instant gratification to create art portraying the essence, spontaneity and beauty. I was originally influenced by meeting a pastel artist whose impressionist style in portraits, landscapes, and still lifes captured my heart. It was love at first sight! When I start a new day at the easel, I am filled with all the possibilities. I love the potential of color, line, shape, patina, expressive gestural drawing and texture coming together. My paintings are based on a photo, a combination of photos, painting from life and my mind’s imagination. I paint the things that I love and inspire me. My hope is that the viewer experiences an emotion that calls to them. Some of my influences come from the scenery in the foothills of Colorado and the desert of Arizona. And although I was never raised on a farm or owned a cow, I am absolutely drawn to painting them and find myself incredibly inspired by cow paintings. It may be because I was born in Wisconsin, known as the land of dairy. “ Placid”… People always use that word to describe cows. But they're also joyful creatures. They run and play, and they love music. ~"Maureen Gibbon - Lost Notebook of Édouard Manet: A Novel I am constantly taking drive-by photos of cows for my reference.. Ever evaluating and evolving my style, I continue my journey.