When I was five years old, my mom took my brother and I to art classes at the Natural History Museum in Santa Barbara. She tells me that after class, my brother and the rest of the kids were breezily happy about the experience, but I was brooding. She asked me why I was so blue, and I replied, "because the drawing that I made is not at all like what I saw in my head."
Instead of being discouraged, I was determined, and indeed I have spend much of the past many years struggling to create the visions that I see in my head. They are no longer taxidermy jackrabbits and red tailed hawks. Now the visions I see in my head (and the sights I seek with my camera lens) often have to do with finding moments of beauty in unlikely places.
As a former teacher, I'm passionate about the ability of art to transform lives. I'm keenly interested in the role that art can play in public service. Below are some organizations that inspire me:
Prison University Project at San Quentin