Artist Members
Susan Bruney
Waynesboro, VA
Mixed Media
Member since February 2024
Susan Bruney is an award-winning multi-media artist who is inspired by her love for travel photography and passion for painting. She has found a way to incorporate both in the unique works she creates. Visiting distant lands and photographing the majesty of nature, as well as the beauty of historical architecture, inspires Susan to “reimagine” those places through her artwork. Her mixed media pieces are intended to capture the essence of a particular place, combining photographic details with the tactile surfaces of heavily applied acrylic paints and various handmade papers.
Originally from the Midwest, Susan earned a BA and MFA in painting. After many years spent living in the metropolitan areas of Chicago and Washington D.C. she retired to the Shenandoah Valley in 2018 and has been happily traveling and making art ever since!
Susan’s work is on continual display at the CoArt Gallery in Staunton and can also be seen at the Shenandoah Valley Art Center in Waynesboro. (Image: Life on the Canal, 2023, mixed media)
Agnieszka (Aga) Elliott
Harrisonburg, VA
Oil painting
Member since February 2024
Agnieszka (Aga) Elliott, is a Signature Member of the Artists for Conservation and a nationally and internationally recognized wildlife artist drawing inspiration from artists like Robert Bateman and Carl Brenders, who not only are naturalists, but who successfully capture wildlife, and their natural environments, through realism.
Aga believes that wildlife art has the potential to inspire viewers to conversation and education, inevitably leading to increased awareness of our planet’s natural heritage. Working exclusively in oils, she aims to portray animals in their moments of beauty. Her goal is to capture their delight of simply being and the essence of their movement, emotion, passion, vulnerability, and majesty. She presents her subjects with the purity of spirit that comes from pure existence in the moment of their capture. Every one of her pieces has a story that is emotive and emotional. (Image: Soul Mates, 2022, oil on linen, 45x30)
Kathy Belcher
Staunton, VA
Cold Wax and Oil
Member since November 2023
Kathy Belcher has worked with a variety of media over the years - fabrics, inks, acrylics, paper, watercolor, collage and now cold wax and oil paints. In February, 2020, she was introduced to painting with cold wax and oils while on vacation. The one and a half years of Covid quarantine allowed her time to research and explore the medium.
Most recently her works have focused on gratitude for the natural world and a desire to celebrate the little things. In addition to the natural world, her inspiration may reflect images of her real or imagined travel. (Image: Dry Fly, 2023)
Ken Carson
Rockingham, VA
Painting, Photography
Member since November 2023
Ken Carson earned an undergraduate degree from Marietta College and taught art in the Bourne, MA school system for 35 years. He also served as assistant director and then director of the Market Barn Gallery in Falmouth, MA, and recently relocated to Rockingham, VA. Ken’s paintings and photography are included in private collections throughout the United States, as well as England, Spain, Ireland, and Italy. He calls himself a Representational Tonal painter and photographer and says the theme of his work is all about the light and emotion.
Camille Gerrick
Charlottesville, VA
Watercolor and Acrylic
Member since March 2023
Camille Gerrick (b. 1984) is a Charlottesville-based artist known for her use of vibrant colors. She grew up on the Florida Gulf Coast, lived in Germany for a few years, and settled in Virginia in 2006. Camille finds inspiration in nature’s patterns - such as the ripples left in the sand by ocean tides, the rings of a tree stump, and the gently overlapping shapes of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Her practice is influenced by living with multiple long-term health conditions, notably her experience with narcolepsy, a rare sleep disorder. Camille works in rainbow palettes due to her belief in the healing power of color.
Laura Thompson
Harrisonburg, VA
Mixed Media and Oils
Member since December 2022
I am fascinated by the juxtaposition of elements that create unexpected relationships and stories, using size, characters and setting to send the viewer on a visual journey through my pieces. In the past year I have developed a style using painted abstract backgrounds (employing similar line work to that which I used in glass) and applying carefully curated collage elements, but I have begun to translate this concept into large scale oil paintings using everyday objects instead of abstract line and shape to support the structure.
Drawing on the absurdity of the Dada movement, dream-like quality of surrealism, and pragmatism of contemporary art, my hope is that each viewer sees a unique and intriguing story unfolding before them. (Image: Night Owls, 2022, mixed media on handbuilt cradled wood panel)
Charlie Kasch
Harrisonburg, VA
Sculpture, mixed media, found objects
Member since December 2022
Charlie Kasch graduated in 1992 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Colorado in Denver, and - after turning his attention to other pursuits for years - began creating art again in 2019. He recently relocated from Colorado to Harrisonburg. (Image: The Divine Pharmacist-detail)
David Cowardin
Harrisonburg, VA
Acrylics; found objects
Member since May 2022
People often ask about what inspires an artist, why they feel the innate need to create. In my case, the answer to that question is equal parts complicated and straightforward. The world around me is my inspiration. I am inspired in every moment, from the close-up of a flower that only blooms once a year, to the layers and stacks of corrugated boxes I see at work, to the wild, colorful buildings in Burano, Italy. I am fascinated by the puzzles created when I attempt to combine the second and third dimensions. I like to say that when this technique is successful, it can draw the viewer in to be more than just an observer; they can become an integral part of the work. Another love of mine are the intersections between lines and shapes and repetitive patterns, both in nature and on the city streets. And of course, color is paramount. (Image: Conversations at MOMA, NYC 2022)
Pat Augsburger
Mt Crawford, VA
Oil painting
Member since November 2021
Photography and fiber arts have been the focus of my artistic practice until recently when I gave in to my desire to paint. It has been wonderfully challenging and has also awakened my passion for creating. The medium of oils was new for me but I soon realized that my years in art school, as well as my experiences with photography and teaching the arts made the leap manageable.
I have experimented with both landscape and figurative painting but I have found that figurative work suits me best. I love exploring the synergy between my subjects and their surroundings and hope that my paintings can be an agent for storytelling. (Image: Wander-i, ©pataugsburger 2022)
Deborah Coffey
Harrisonburg, VA
Visual Artist - mixed media
Member since August 2021
Working in mixed media satisfies the sculptor, painter and poet in me. Combinations of concept, subject and materials keep the work alive and developing in ways that surprise me. Like a walk in the woods, making art engages all the senses and allows for surprises when the unpredictable presents itself. That is the territory of frustration and fun. Over the past two years I consistently return to the subject of trees and forests. The attraction seems to be outside of my control. (Image: Somewhere, 2022)
Everett M. Ressler
Rockingham, VA
Sculpture
Member since August 2021
Shaped by EMU and JMU, life experience, and a wonderful family, I returned to the Harrisonburg community after the privilege of working internationally for nearly 40 years in the humanitarian field, retiring from UNICEF. Sculpture remains a life long study.
Corinne Diop
Harrisonburg, VA
Photography and mixed media
Member since July 2021
I am a locally-based artist and a professor of art at James Madison University. I have an MFA from University of Washington in Seattle and a BS in Art from JMU. I am originally from Lancaster County, PA, but have been connected to this area since high school.
My recent artwork centers on an installation of objects and materials that I keep outside in the rain, sun, and snow, sometimes weathering it in place for several years. Patterned wallpaper, flowered fabrics and my own or found photographs intermingle with items such as empty paints cans, real and artificial flowers, a cracked Plexiglas vitrine and broken light fixtures, with the accumulating detritus, rust and rot embraced as equal contributions. I photograph this ever-changing arrangement to produce suites of archival pigment prints; I also harvest the aged objects and photographs for exhibition as wall pieces and installations. This work speaks of memory, change and grief and questions notions of aesthetics and beauty.
Billie Rosenberger
Staunton, VA
Acrylic and Watercolors and mixed media
Member since January 2021
Billie Rosenberger is inspired and enchanted with the quiet and slower pace of nature, all the colors and textures. She conveys her delight and restfulness with vibrant, bold colors or soft atmospheric colors. Each painting has multiple layers to convey the aliveness she feels. A native of Shenandoah County who now lives in Staunton , she works mostly in water media.
Viktoriya Samoylov
Grottoes, VA
Acrylic, Mixed Media, Digital
Member since September 2020
Viktoriya Samoylov is a Ukrainian-born American living in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. She has always been drawn to an artistic and “imperfect” human touch in art. She generally creates impressionist figurative work with acrylics and watercolor, though enjoys learning and mixing other mediums such as epoxy, glass, etc. Many recent pieces are inspired by candid family photographs from post-soviet Ukraine. Being able to add color to the black and white photos allows her to bring new life and learn from the overlooked details. Compared to isolated connections in modern social life, it is heartwarming to see the personal and physical connections between the subjects.
Herb Weaver
Harrisonburg, VA
Ceramic Sculpture
Member since August 2020
An art educator and artist for forty years, focusing on political satire, and attempting to address the whimsical nature of humanity, in hopes of finding a morsel of sanity to deal with the absurdity of life circumstances.
Lana Lambert
Charlottesville, VA
Printmaking and Illustrating
Member Since July 2018
Born and raised in Nelson County, VA, Lambert attended the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington D.C. She is continually inspired by the woods and fauna of the Appalachian mountain range. Woodblock printing and linoleum block printing are a favorite media and she has even learned the rice-based technique of Japanese woodblock printing used by the masters to produced prints for artists like Hokusai and Hiroshige.
John M. Bell
Mount Sidney, VA
Acrylic, Oil
Member since July 2019
My paintings depict both the natural and the man-made world. Recent works have been inspired by my travels in Scotland and Ireland as well as my home environment in rural Shenandoah Valley. I seek to combine the visual sense of place and time with the subjective and aesthetic experience. Art is a means for me to enhance my day-to-day experiences – to become more aware of emotions, colors, textures, memories – and then to translate those experiences into paintings. Hopefully, in seeing the work, viewers can have a similar experience and then take that awareness with them as part of their own lives.
Julia Merkel
Keezletown, VA
Oil Paint
Merkel is a figurative abstract expressionist oil painter of primarily four legged subjects, but her background in sculpture and book arts occasionally lead her toward large drawing installations and artists’ books.
John Rose
Harrisonburg, VA
Cartoonist
Member since September 2018
John Rose is the cartoonist of the popular, long-running Barney Google and Snuffy Smith comic strip which is syndicated by King Features Syndicate to hundreds of newspapers worldwide. He began working on the comic strip as an inking assistant to cartoonist Fred Lasswell in 1998 and became the strip's cartoonist in 2001. He has authored three Snuffy Smith comic strip book collections. He and his wife Karen are graduates of James Madison University and live in Harrisonburg. In August of 2021, Rose was awarded the Jack Davis Award for South East Cartoonist Of The Year by the South East Chapter Of The National Cartoonists Society.
AJ Morey
Timberville, VA
Photography
Member since September 2018
I'm a late life photographer who began by documenting horse-human interactions in equine therapies and animal connections. I’m also interested in photography that interacts with social issues and celebrates the beauty of the quotidian. My book, Picturing Dogs, Seeing Ourselves: American Vintage Photographs (Penn State UP, 2014) is based on my collection of antique and vintage postcards of people with their dogs, and I have a similar collection focused on women and horses. I'm still pondering what do to with those and my own photos of women with horses. My photos have been published in The Horse Cure: Remarkable Horses Bringing Miraculous Change to Humankind (Trafalgar Square Press, May 2019) by horse specialist Michelle Holling-Brooks. My first show, "Defy the Machine," was a First Friday event at the Wilson Downtown Gallery, August 3-September 28, 2018, and my work has since been included in other regional and national shows.
Laurence Heine
Rockingham, VA
Photography
Member Since January 2018
I have been interested in photography since childhood and have amassed boxes of slides and photos, most of which have never been viewed. Since switching to digital cameras I have also generated many thousands of digital images (more than 2000 images on an 18 day trip to national parks in the West in 2015). I have long had a desire to be able to display my best images so others could appreciate them and I recently started mounting and matting my best (or favorite) images. My favorite subjects are objects and scenes of natural beauty.
Brenda Hounshell
Harrisonburg, VA
Water Media
Member Since December 2017
Brenda Hounshell is a water media artist who resides in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Art. Her concentration of study was in drawing and design. In recent years she has adopted watercolor as her primary medium. Brenda is a signature member of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, the Baltimore Watercolor Society and the Virginia Watercolor Society.
Mauricio Esperon
Staunton, VA
Acrylic, Oil, Canvas, Wood
Member Since October 2017
Mauricio Esperon is a local painter and photographer from Staunton, Virginia. Esperon has been an artist member of the since October 2017. Esperon is originally from Montevideo, Uruguay. “When I was 19, I was able to be part of an exchange program with the Mennonite Church, and I came to the States for a year,” said Esperon. Esperon returned to the United States, living in Miami before eventually settling down in Virginia in 2005. While Esperon was in Miami, he was introduced to art by a co-worker and started painting in 2002. Esperon went to a school in Miami where art was emphasized. Esperon studied graphic arts and worked in a printing company. Esperon observes primitive objects around him and wants to create meaningful art about the every-day commonplace matter. Esperon mainly does abstract and uses an expressionist style in his paintings. He likes to paint on wood canvases and uses acrylic and oil paint. Esperon also recycles old paintings and creates new art from previously used canvases. “What inspires me is to, one day, leave behind something great; something my boys are going to be proud of,” said Esperon. Esperon is featured in an upcoming Arts Council of the Valley members show. He currently is finishing a tryptic he started in 2002. Esperon would like to do more shows and sell more too, but he paints part-time. His main job is painting houses where he makes a blank wall his canvas.
Jerry Coulter
Harrisonburg, VA
Oil and Drawing Media
Member Since September 2017
My task as an artist is to fit feeling to form.
I have always been interested in the expressive potential of the human form and how to use that form to get the expression in the painting as opposed to letting the figure merely stand for or symbolize something. That is why I generally work with figurative and non-objective imagery at the same time. My studio is often filled with figurative and non-objective paintings at various stages of development. I see no difference in the basic task of fitting feeling to form regardless of which type of painting I am working on at the time. I enjoy the freedom from realistic imagery in non-objective painting while at the same time facing the daunting task of bringing order out of chaos in the search of the perfect fit of form to feeling.
My task is to make the form expressive not descriptive.
Doug Hendren, MD (Musical Scalpel)
Harrisonburg, VA
Music
Member since February 2024
I write and perform songs about the challenges of living in the time of climate change. I also play a variety of guitar styles, and particularly like 60s music. I'm from Boston originally. Nancy and I raised our kids among the redwoods of California, until earthquake phobia sent me scurrying back east. After retiring from orthopedic surgery, I earned an MBA in Sustainable Business. I’m involved heavily in climate action and education, including Renew Rocktown, 50by25, and EPSAC locally. For people confused or intimidated by climate science, I started writing “climate music” a few years ago, publishing my 6th album last year. It’s all freely available on my website. (Image: Doug Hendren performing with his wife Nancy Hendren)
Alison Thomas
Louisa, VA
Digitally manipulated photography
Member since December 2023
Alison Thomas is an award-winning photographer / artist whose work stimulates the viewer to explore more deeply the way beauty is seen and experienced by removing much of the detail and leaving only the essence. Many times, our eyes get lost in the details or the flaws and we miss the beauty of the scene before us. Alison specializes in panoramas both vertical and horizontal. Her work is shown in several galleries in the Virginia and Maryland area. (Image: Ghost Tree, 2023, digitally modified photography)
Bill Nelson
Staunton, VA
Illustration, Sculpture
Member since December 2023
Bill Nelson has exhibited his illustrations in galleries and museums worldwide, including the Norman Rockwell Museum, which featured his series of Big Band illustrations created for the US Postal Service. In addition to his award-winning career as an illustrator, Bill is an internationally-recognized sculptor and ventriloquist figure maker. His one-of-a-kind creations have made their way into the private collections of Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, David Copperfield, Bruce Willis, and others.
Meg Davies
Gordonsville, VA
Acrylic
Member since February 2023
Meg Davies is an artist based in central Virginia whose inspiration comes from the simple, joyful moments of life. By taking what would otherwise be lost, the artist preserves memories in her work. While the source of these joys may vary – from botanicals to landscapes, from busy bus stops to bugs – she ties together her subject matter through the consistent use of unique contour lines and a calm, earthy palette. Because each moment captured is a memory worth holding on to, each piece tells a narrative, allowing the work to open viewers up for sharing, connecting, and story-telling as they reflect on their own experiences.
Meg was born and raised in Lynchburg, Virginia and graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in painting and drawing. She creates from a home-studio and is a represented artist in several Virginian galleries. Her work has been exhibited by galleries and collected by private clients across the United States and Europe.
Mae Stoll
Staunton, VA
Acrylics, soft pastels, copper & silver wire
Member since December 2022
Originally from the island of Malta, I moved to Virginia in 2019 after more than 40 years in Texas. It was probably the beauty of this valley that inspired me to buy my first set of acrylics late in 2020 and start dabbling. I added soft pastels to my repertoire a year later and love both mediums. Not having any formal instruction aside from a couple of elective art classes in college, I’m still adjusting to this late-in-life art “awakening” and new identity as an artist. I find myself painting mostly landscapes, in various styles from realism to the abstract and everything in between. Sometimes things just flow, and life is good; at other times, things don't and the work is exhausting; but somehow, it always feels like it's what I should be doing. I've taken part in several regional art festivals, am a member of the Shenandoah Valley Art Center in Waynesboro and some of my work is represented at the Cabell Gallery for Virginia Art in Lexington.
Wire-wrapped jewelry is an older passion of mine – I love introducing a pretty stone to some wire, and watching what happens…
Chito Padilla
Marshall, VA
Acrylic, cold wax and oil, mixed media
Member since August 2022
Chito Padilla is a self-taught visual artist who launched his career in painting after a long career in International Development. He identifies as an intuitive painter and his gestural style as heavily influenced by the abstract expressionist movement. “Painting is an emotional experience for me. Perhaps because I am self-taught and came late into painting, I allow myself the adventure of creating in the moment. Each painting has its own way of evolving. I may start with bold strokes of color then I push and pull paint. I build texture so I scrape paint to reveal many layers built over time and let an image come through. Once I sense the suggestion of a story, I let my brush write it. When I discern an image, I may continue to define it or just let it reveal itself. I do not dictate what others should see when a piece is finished. I just feel it is ready.” Chito exhibited at the Smith House Galleries in July 2022 with a collection entitled “Painted Daydreams”. He regularly participates in exhibits at The Artists in Middleburg. (Image: Rojo, 2022, acrylic on wood)
Chelsea Rowe
Harrisonburg, VA
Metalsmithing and contemporary Jewelry
Member since February 2022
Chelsea is an active member of the internationally recognized non-profits Radical Jewelry Makeover in the Artist Project and Ethical Metalsmiths as an Emerging Jeweler Member. Her work spans from contemporary production jewelry to one-of-a-kind and sculptural art jewelry. Influenced by Contemporary and Modern Design, graphic 2D artwork, and the people that interact with her artwork and jewelry, Chelsea creates production jewelry and art jewelry with the goal of making the world just a little bit more beautiful with each piece she makes in her Harrisonburg-based studio. This means designing unique jewelry by rethinking the lens in which we traditionally think of jewelry in our culture. If you find yourself in Chelsea's art and jewelry studio, you will notice that she is building a studio practice that enhances not only the health of herself as the artist, but also the environment, and the folks that mine and source the materials she works with. The goal is to be able to create pieces that her clients can feel good about because they know the materials were sourced well. She aims to support the growth of a more sustainable jewelry field from "Mine to Market" through her jewelry artist practice.
After earning her BFA in Jewelry & Metalsmithing from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Chelsea moved to the Shenandoah Valley where she resides and works as an artist.
Judith Anderson
Harrisonburg, VA
Oil on panel, oil and cold wax, collage
Member since October 2021
My work follows several strains: I have painted trains for a number of years, fascinated by their surfaces and geometrics. This same interest carries over into my plein air paintings where my attraction to rusty surfaces, the geometric sides of old barns, etc. is evident. I have also photographed and had mounted close-ups of the textures and graffiti on the sides of old trains. Most recently, I have been experimenting with abstract paintings, using cold wax and collage.
Since we have only lived in Harrisonburg since January of 2021, my contributions to the 2022 ACV Membership Show will be the first showing in Harrisonburg proper of any of my work. I continue to maintain a wall of work at Crossroads Art Center in Richmond, which I change out approximately every two months, and I am a participant in their online collection. Also in Richmond, I was a member (past President) of Artspace, a non-profit gallery and remain an “on-leave” member. I have exhibited there, as well as participated in other exhibitions in Richmond. In the past, I have been represented by several galleries in Cape May, NJ, and vicinity. I have also had several exhibitions in Lexington at Studio Eleven (no longer extant).
Ann Baker
Harrisonburg, VA
Watercolor
Member Since August 2021
After a serious wrist injury, a fellow artist brought me a collection of birds' nests to draw for therapy. It was so much fun that I have created a series of all types of nests in graphite and watercolor. This image, titled Twizzler, is a robin's nest; it’s interesting how the robin used trash and color to decorate her nest.
Ann Baker grew up in Harrisonburg and graduated from Greensboro College with a BA in Art Education and from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with an MFA. After teaching High School Art in the Guilford County Public Schools, she returned home to teach privately in her studio. She has a Botanical Illustration Certificate from Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond.
Lyndi Angermeier
Staunton, VA
Acrylic and Oil
Member since September 2011
LANDSCAPES - As a child I had a strong connection to the Florida beaches. Later, after attending art school in New Orleans, I was fortunate to spend twenty years painting in northern California, where the Big Sur coast captured my attention. Living in the Shenandoah Valley has rekindled my interest in landscape painting. I have always been a keen observer of sunlight as it shifts across the landscape during the day and changes with the seasons. My work reveals my fascination with the abstract qualities of water and the beautiful pageantry of colors that appear in the sky and mountains.
Making art allows me to focus on the beauty that surrounds us, connecting me to a profound joy. It’s my way of serving others with purpose and passion. I believe we all need the embrace of place, the memory of a sweeter time. It’s my hope that my landscapes will transport you there, again and again.
ABSTRACTS - I see myself foremost as a colorist. There is an intuitive process to how I approach my abstract work. I begin with a very general road map. As I create subtle markings and shapes, they begin to lead me down a familiar path. These elements that emerge; reminiscent of boats, figures or cottages; recur throughout my body of work. I let the imagery and color harmonies guide me, as I layer indistinct and isolated structures. Often a ghost image, or faint trace of something makes its way into the final painting. These abstract works often represent transitional times, desires and longings for a sense of family, home and community.
Trudy L. Cole
Singers Glen, VA
Oil Painting and Mixed Media
Member since October 2019
Website
I have many passions which include painting, drawing, singing, gardening, animals as well as a love for the farm she calls home. With degrees in both fine arts and graphic design, followed by an extensive career in graphic design, as owner of Snapps Creek Stables, I am particularly interested in that space where my passions meet. In retirement, I am returning to my fine arts roots and appreciative of my new-found freedom to create works that simply make me happy.
Trudy L. Cole is a Professor Emeritus of Graphic Design, Associate Director of the School of Art, Design and Art History at James Madison University as well as an accomplished graphic designer. See her ACV Smith House Galleries virtual exhibition, Sheltering in (a Great) Place, here.
(Image: Rockingham COWnty, 2024, oil on canvas)
Doris M. Martin
Mount Solon, VA
Acrylic
Member since June 2018
Most of my paintings are done in acrylic and can be described as abstract. I am primarily an intuitive painter depending a great deal on color to express myself. The process of creating a painting sometimes requires many iterations before being resolved; at other times, a finished painting may evolve quite quickly. I find great satisfaction in exploring and experimenting which has led to a “style” that varies with my muses. The world around me, particularly the natural scenes and experiences near our country home, provide many initial inspirations.
Bahir Al Badry
Bridgewater, VA
Mixed Media
Member Since December 2017
This art deals with the idea of resolving the issues of mankind through the search for justice, freedom and our existence. To conceive this idea, I utilize both the elements and the symbols of the totem art. These feelings are brought about as a result of being deprived of the elements of humanity; peace, love and freedom from where I grew up. I belong to the ancient city of Ur ( Sumerian civilization), thus, the culture of one of the earliest civilizations in the world is engraved in me.
Jo Ansah
Harrisonburg, VA
Mixed Media
Member Since November 2017
Jo Ansah is a mixed media artist from Harrisonburg, Virginia. She creates abstract, non- representational compositions by combining a variety of art supplies with discarded materials. She has exhibited her work in numerous group and juried shows around the state.
Barbara Camph
Harrisonburg, VA
Stained Glass
Member Since January 2015
I started learning the craft of stained glass in the early 1980’s in California, and only as a hobby. In 1995 we moved to Portugal for an adventure, but were too young not to work. We started our mini-businesses: my husband made furniture and I stained glass. So many people helped us, and we survived, learning so, so much along the way.
After 12 wonderful years in Portugal, we moved to Panama where we continued our trades. We stayed there for six years and then moved to the Shenandoah Valley, where we have family. All this adventure involved moving our furniture, art work, and clothes all over the world; I can’t face packing up all that glass again…sheet by sheet!
This well-travelled glass inspires me. I like to say that “glass talks to me”. There is nothing better than sitting at my work table, with the beautiful glass around me…all of it waiting to be cut and fashioned into something new. How fortunate am I?