ART SERVICES

Whether you are putting together a portfolio for college admissions and wanting to know what to include, wanting feedback on a body of work, or are stuck on a project and need an outside pair of eyes, critiques from another artist can provide helpful insight and direction. In my career as an artist and professor, outside of teaching, the most common and enjoyable part of my work has been giving artists feedback on the work they make. Critiques usually run for about an hour depending on the amount of work and the needs of the artist.

There is a flat fee of $50 per session.

I specialize in drawing, relief printmaking, and bookmaking and would love to share the process of beginning or improving your skills. Classes can be held in my Homewood studio or at your home within the Birmingham metro area. Instruction will be tailored to your goals and skill level and frequency can be discussed individually.

Private lessons are available at $60 an hour with discounts for multiple hours and small groups (up to four).

The myth of the isolated artist in their studio toiling without interaction and community can be hard to dislodge. All artists need someone to check in and make sure that the work is getting done and the necessary time is being put in to grow. Or perhaps you are looking for ways to creatively generate ideas with a new medium or start in a new direction. Art coaching and accountability sessions are available with a variable fee structure based on the level of interaction that suits your needs. Request more information to start a conversation and see how I can be of assistance.

Spreading the importance of art education and the way that art can challenge and improve life for communities and individuals is part of how I define my job as an artist-teacher. I would love to speak to your group or your school. Request more information to start a conversation about how we can connect.

No one can teach anyone else how to make art. As someone who has taught art for almost two decades, this is an important truth for me to remember, as well as an important truth for me to impart to those artists I work with. Art can be learned, but it is an independent process that is developed within each practitioner. This learning looks like working on authentic process, development of technique and experimentation with materials. An authentic process is one that is defined by its universality within the work of the practitioner—it is not bound by any one medium and can be just as effective with traditional materials as contemporary. It is a process of investigation and engagement. Working on technique and material experimentation are more dependent on the physical reality of the “stuff” of art. This is what most studio time is spent on; learning best practices in the painting studio, safe use of printmaking equipment and appropriate ways to sharpen a pencil. Once these two things-authentic process and confidence in and knowledge of techniques and materials are combined-then a student can begin working towards discovering what their art looks like. One of my most important roles as an art teacher and facilitator is to create an atmosphere where serious and inquisitive making can occur. This has to include accountability which is a balance of both encouragement and criticism where disciplined struggles and joyful creations coexist.

The goal of my teaching and facilitating is to come alongside students and other artists to help lead them down a path where authentic and profound realizations can be made in not only their artistic process but also in their life.

The work of art is a challenging business. Many of the processes and discoveries artists try seem fruitless and frustrating, if not discouraging. As maturing makers struggle to grow beyond their perceived abilities, they need to be able to take satisfaction in their work and remember what it is that drew them in the first place to create. My goal in my own work and in my teaching is not to have the art take center stage, but to allow the result of the art, the change that looking and doing creates in me, be the most beneficial end result. Art is ultimately about life-a fuller engagement with the world around us as artists but also communicating that to our audience through the works we make.