About Mimi

The short story:

I moved from my life long home of Pennsylvania to Cape Cod in 1997 to pursue my painting in an environment of light and beauty. Nature is my inspiration. The Holy Spirit is my muse.

I paint mostly in oils, while also enjoying the flexibility and spontaneity of watercolor pencils paired with ink.

It is my goal to bring to life scenes and visions that inspire, soothe, and bring joy, be they tiny minis at 2"x2" or massive multi panel installations.

The longer story:

My earliest memory of sketching is in a cow pasture.  I think I was 10.  A Saturday children's class.  I remember butterscotch candies being a part of that day.  Funny the memories that stay with us, isn’t it?

At 13, my mother placed me in a Saturday morning painting class at Moyer’s Art Gallery in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania.  Little did she know the lifelong effect her choice would have.  As the years progressed, I began to refer to the instructor, Jeanie Moyer, as “my other mother” and she to me as “her other daughter.”  Jeanie was my first exposure to spirituality, and to ways of viewing the world differently than what I learned at home.

I studied a combined art and academic curriculum in high school.  Urged to pursue art in college, I made an intentional decision to do otherwise.  I was under the mistaken assumption that work and enjoyment could not be synonymous.

I started college as an Animal Science major at the University of Delaware (back to the cow pastures), then transferred to Gettysburg College where I struggled through a Biology major (about as similar to animal science as horse shoes and running shoes.)  During a one month January term I took a figure drawing course from the head of the art department, a man notorious for "no A’s" and yes, I earned an A.  Then went back to the labs.

I'm a firm believer that God gives us signs.  I suppose I wasn’t paying attention.

Following graduation, there was one short year at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg.  My faith deepened, even as my grades and life pointed me in directions that would not include ordination as a Lutheran pastor. 

All the while I continued to paint. In 1995, I was offered my first painting commission - an old orchard barn in western Pennsylvania.  On a beautiful day in early October, I found myself once again in a field, camera around my neck and sketchbook in hand.  I wore jeans and a t-shirt and was paid to do something I loved. Said to myself, “Oh, so THIS is what work can feel like!”

I relocated to Cape Cod in 1997.  Opened my first gallery in the breezeway of my home. Then a different one on Main Street in Falmouth, finally settling into a smaller working studio in West Falmouth, and back to the original breezeway gallery.

I've always thought of my style as impressionistic realism, though in the past several years have experimented with other styles. 

One night, particularly frustrated with a large painting that was mis-behaving, I took a painting knife to it and started to smear the paint around. It was - liberating.  Exhilarating.  And at the same time, it quieted my soul.  I had created my first abstract painting, quite unintentionally.

I continued to experiment with this new method.  To be honest, it scared me.  I was used to starting out with a photograph, and a destination in mind.  Now, I was in front of a blank canvas having no idea where it was headed.  My process became one of growing quiet, praying, listening for inspiration, choosing colors and moving the painting knife where I felt led on the canvas.  Abstract paintings emerged before my eyes, the result being seemingly random patterns of paint that I would describe as divinely guided.

Onward to 2020 and 2021, I allowed this new process to influence how I approached painting of more realistic scenes. In 2021, I took to painting knife and small canvases from the front seat of my car, and the 54 days Falmouth Beach Paintings in 54 Days project was born.  More about that may be found on the project's title page here. 

This year, I'm playing with quick little watercolor/ink sketches, like the one below.

Surrender.  Ask God's help. Then go where I feel led.  Notice the mistakes.  Make corrections. The story of my painting, and my life.

Mimi