About me

I’m a strange amalgam of right-brain | left-brain thoughts. I’m a trained draftsman, artist, and writer.  My portfolio includes logos, catalogs, stuffed animals, furniture, home and pet products, and even a very expensive cuckoo clock. I’m also a technologist with patents in advertising and authentication technologies. I have not followed a traditional path through life.

My grandfather was an architect in New York. He was an amazing draftsman and taught me about line, shading, and contours, He did an amazing drawing of the Empire Building from his office window in Manhattan that I tried to copy as a little kid. It came out so wonky that my mother sent it to Dr. Seuess. In return, Dr Seuss sent me an incredible letter saying I had inspired one of his upcoming book illustrations. My mom framed the letter and it was my prized possession growing up, but it was lost on one of our moves – I was a military brat and we moved a LOT. It’s still a prized memory.

My dad was a surgeon with an entrepreneurial bent. If I tagged along when he went to his office (in aerospace research) or the hospital at Stanford, he would toss me into different departments and tell me to go learn something. One of those departments was the medical illustrator’s office. She told me to study Grey’s Anatomy and to take drafting. That wasn’t a class girls were “supposed” to take back then. 

Mr. Tavner, my first drafting teacher in 9th grade, fought to keep me in his class when one of the female counselors wanted to put me in Home Economics instead of drafting. It was a rinse-and-repeat moment when I had to fight to stay in Drafting 2 the following year. Those weren’t the only times I had to fight to learn or participate in things that were designated as “only for boys or men.”

I’ve had so many amazing people teach me through the years, and I am so thankful to them for sharing their expertise and love of learning.

• Bockleman taught me to use all of my senses when writing.
• Ted Weissbuch taught me more than I can tell you about the craft of professional writing and that one of the best skillsets for business was the ability to write and communicate.
• F. MacNelly let me explore my artistic side paired with writing.
• Larry Johnson showed me the importance of story in illustration.
• Bill was an amazing designer who taught you can design for someone unless you know who they are, to put ego aside so that they design can be exceptional and serve the needs of the client, and to make sure your work is always presented professionally.
• Proffitt recruited me for 2 years to take his electronics class and taught me that 2 cents of persuasion was the difference between a commodity and a product.
• Mark Gale and Mrs.Kurick showed me there was incredible knowledge in unconventional subjects and approaches.

These are just a few of the amazing people who have broadened my horizons through the years, and I’m still learning and having fun exploring this amazing universe of ours.