Like that poorly-drawn storybook kid Harold who put crayon to wall, I -- at seven -- drew the same stairs, castle, King and Queen on my wall. But unlike Harold's crude purple renderings, mine did not come to life. Thus were learned three important lessons from art. One: don't believe everything in books. Lesson Two: draw with pencil, not crayon. You can erase mistakes made in pencil. And Three, which took longer to sink in: the point is not to have it leap to life literally, but EMOTIONALLY. Lesson Three remains the core of all my artwork. Everything is based on careful freehand charcoal drawings beneath the surface of the oil paints. And the appeal of my paintings -- spanning a range from quirky toy-enacting Bookshelf Melodramas to large-scale visually fascinating architectural "character studies" -- counts on emotional sparks.

Primarily self-taught by spending thousands of hours drawing and painting. Exhibits since 2001 include two in New York City; two in France; two solo shows, five two-person shows and several group shows in Santa Barbara; admission to LACMA Art Sales and Rental Gallery in 2006, with seven paintings of historic buildings in their "L.A. Visions" show in 2007. Solo show (21 paintings) of "Museum-Worthy Architecture" at Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara in summer 2010. Collectors include Hollywood legend Eva Marie Saint; noted philanthropist Michael Towbes; and Malibu architect James McGlothlin. Long-term corporate rental clients (via LACMA) include entertainment law firms (Santa Monica); the Los Angeles Movie Editors Guild; and Overbrook Entertainment (Beverly Hills, Will Smith's production company). Municipal collections include cities of Oxnard and Santa Paula (1970s). Ripley Entertainment, Inc. acquired "Skyline With T. Rex" for their museum (2002) and Chateau des Reaux (France) acquired two paintings in 2008 for their permanent collection.