As you may have guessed from the subject line, I have some interesting stories to share with you this week! As we enter the home stretch to Christmas and Hanukkah, I’m touched and humbled by the number of visitors to the Pittsburgh Holiday Market who are aware of my artwork. I’m also blessed with many friends and family members who are willing to help out at my little chalet in Market Square. Thanks to them, I’m able to take a break when needed to warm up and have a little something at the nearby Dunkin’ Donuts. However, my occasional absences…

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday. Every year, I take this time to reflect on how thankful I am for the blessings in my life. It’s also my time to give back to you for being there for me. As a special thank-you to my loyal friends and fans, I’m offering a special gift – for this weekend only, everything on my website is 10% off with FREE shipping over $100.00 for art prints and giftware! This is the perfect time to get started on your holiday shopping with a special gift that will remind your loved ones of…

Sorry, but I have to take the blame for this recent cold snap! I admit that I asked Santa to bring some frosty weather and snow to get everyone thinking about the holidays, and he came through for me just in time to launch the season’s festivities. Can you believe that Thanksgiving is next week? It won’t be long before the jolly old man from the North Pole will be visiting all the girls and boys (except maybe the naughty ones, but I’m sure you’re not one of them!). This is an exciting weekend for me as we kick off…

My holiday whirl has already begun! At this time of year, you can expect to find me all over the map, meeting and greeting, chatting and laughing with shoppers and art lovers, friends old and new. Needless to say, it’s my favorite time of year. All these holiday activities and shows bring back memories of Christmas 1989, the year when I painted “Meet Me Under Kaufmann’s Clock.” It was the first building I ever painted, and it launched my career as a Pittsburgh artist. And now here we are at its 25th anniversary! Tom and I were stunned at the…

It’s that time of year again! My busiest season is about to begin, with orders flowing in, events and shows to exhibit, etc., I’m done painting until January, but what most people don’t realize is that my work doesn’t end after I add my signature to a piece. There’s still much more to be done long after the paint has dried! For example, I’ve been spending a lot of time at the printers recreating “Holiday Greetings from My Hometown” in ink for the print. I’m also developing the ornament, which is a time-consuming two-week process (if I’m lucky!). Then I…

One question that I’m asked a lot at my speaking engagements is, “Which painting is your favorite?” That’s not an easy question for me to answer, because I love all my paintings for different reasons. Of course, I do have a few special favorites, and “My Hometown” is definitely one of them because of the wonderful memories I associate with it. Back in our younger days, Tom and I lived on the North Side of Pittsburgh when he was just starting his ministry, and we spent 11 happy years there together. When I painted “My Hometown,” I wanted to make…

Though things start getting very busy in October, the real push starts in November when I seem to have one show after another through the end of the year. In fact, I have a saying about my creative process that holds true each and every year: “If I don’t have a painting finished by November 1st, it will not get finished until January.”. It’s sad, but true… And I have a theory about why that happens. It’s because, like everyone else, my brain has two sides – one side is the creative side that imagines the paintings and creates them.…

Sometimes we forget that about 20 years before the American Revolution, another war was fought right here in Western Pennsylvania. England and France fought the French and Indian War (where a young George Washington got his first military experience) for control of the land west of the Alleghenies. So of course, Fort Duquesne at the Three Rivers was a prime target. Because Fort Ligonier was the closest British supply post, the French attacked it on October 12, 1758. The British victory on that day is now commemorated every year with Fort Ligonier Days. This is my fifth year exhibiting at…

As I finished my most recent Pittsburgh painting, “Winter’s Glow on Grant Street,” I was reminded that I would not be the artist I am today if it weren’t for my husband, Tom. I have been very blessed over the years to have his total support, but more than that, he has turned into a perceptive and brutally honest art critic. You may wonder why this is something I’d be happy about… so I’ll share with you a little glimpse into my life! I tend to be quite stubborn (of course, you never would have guessed, right?), and sometimes painting…