When I moved to Harrison County in the late 1970's, the Bridgeport Stockyard was one of the first landmarks I was attracted to artistically. It had a homespun quality that was so typical of the West Virginia landscape. I liked the idea of having a little piece of country life in the middle of town. Watching the people with trucks full of livestock preparing for the auction every Monday made my senses stand at attention. I quickly learned that many individuals in the community had a fond connection to this place. Even now, when people request directions to Artworks, they ask, "You mean by the old stockyard?"

West Virginia is a state with rolling hills, small white farm houses dotting the countryside and small streams everywhere. This is a actual place which combines the essence of West Virginia into one scene, but could be a small town anywhere and that's why I liked it because it's commonplace look made it feel like home.

Snowbird, Idaho These two boys were so endearing - out working on a cold, spring day, with their ruddy cheeks and fresh haircuts. Even with all the mud around them, the landscape had a wide open, free feeling to it that was attractive to me. The pigs were oblivious to all the commotion, when we stopped and I took their photograph. They were happy fellows and more than willing to stop work for a second to get their picture taken!

Florence has the most amazing juxtapositioning of buildings. Perhaps what makes it so unique is that all the roofs have the same baked tile, so it has uniformity. What was interesting, was that in the midst of all these buildings, a beautiful old church tower stood. The surrounding buildings almost seemed to protect it.

This is a monotype (meaning one of a kind). It is done by applying ink to a zinc or copper plate, but not carving into the surface. It is then placed through the printing press to create the image. A residue is left, like a grey shadow, on the plate. More ink can then be applied to alter the image or cause it to evolve. Then I hand colored it to be like the actual objects

I was driving along one day and here were all these chairs stacked up outside an antique shop. I thought the blue dot added a fun touch to these traditional chairs and as I began painting, the purple shadows began to emerge with a presence of their own. I minimized detail on the chairs themselves and found in the end a looser, uncomplicated piece which was fresh and different for my way of painting.

This is one of my favorite paintings. The scene is so typical of what you see in Ireland - a middle-aged woman, babies in strollers, luscious flowers and bright hazy days. I was particularly interested in the storefront windows and the ordinary feeling of this view. I try to be faithful to the image that attracted me in the first place. Often this means that the colors will be somewhat repetitive or not perfectly balanced...but this is real life. I try to capture a moment in time and hope that the viewer can identify with it.

This tropical scene makes me feel the bright sunlight which even causes the shadows to be gleaming. I ate breakfast out here each morning and watched the wind blow ripples thru the water

This street scene in Florence perhaps captures best the everyday feel of an Italian city - small cars, tons of signage and flowers - colorful against the cool, impassive stucco and stone wall.

I have always liked architecture and this doorway had wonderful shadows. The stark white of the balcony offsets the deep purples in the shadows and the intense black in the doorway. Sometimes the most provocative images are the everyday subjects that we always overlook.

This is a sequel to the Thorn Creek Painting of a fly fisherman evaluating his catch. I liked the shadows on the face and the clothes which were more important, actually, than the fish!

This is one of my favorite paintings, partly because the angle is exactly as you see from the street level, because the oldness of the architecture and because a limited palette of color can still create a strong painting. Sometimes when the color is limited, the subject has more of a chance to show its strength.

I saw this place while on a drive along the coast in Northern Ireland. I liked the simplicity of the building and the friendliness that the pathway created towards it. I could just imagine waking up every morning with a cup of tea and toast, walking along the beach and listening to the waves.

This scene is in the center of Florence, Italy, and a place that had wonderful desserts and of course, capuccino. It had an old-world air to the inside with dark paneling and small Italian waiters who took great pride in their profession.

This woman is the companion piece to "Lunch Break - Tonglii, Chins". No matter where you go, people sell flowers and anything else they can make money from. This woman was standing still in the middle of an intersection with cars ans trucks speeding by her on all sides. I loved the weaving in the basket and the colorful flowers which contrasted her very simple attire.

Tonglii is the Venice of China with waterways and boats. This painting was mostly neutral in color except for the red on the man's glasses. Notice the cat paw prints on the piece of wood used in the door. I don't paint a lot of people, but China was a difficult place to pass up the opportunity to capture the people and their settings.

A hot sunny afternoon, but the water says a breeze is eminent. I wanted to create the human presence here without the person actually pictured, so the viewer could imagine his or her own self there, lying in the sun, letting their minds drift...