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About Denise: My passion for art was awakened around the age of 9; I attended an art class every Saturday each summer through the age of 14. I was taught the basics: sketching, oil painting, pastels, charcoal, still life and portraiture by an inspiring, memorable teacher. As maturity permitted, a short train ride into Philadelphia allowed me to attend the Philadelphia College of Art. I acquired independence, a taste of city life, but more importantly.new eyes. I believe it was then that I began seeing not the ordinary, but the unique possibilities within simplicity. After college and several years of traveling, I settled in California. Pottery lured my interest and after 4 years of mastering the wheel, clay and porcelain became my new best friends. Upon marrying and then the birth of my son....art transitioned once more, this time through a child's eyes: simplicity in form, with bold, contrasting colors...as innocent and beautiful as a child. A few years later, we migrated north and settled in Portland. Life was sailing along smoothly until an early diagnosis of breast cancer. Lights flashed, sirens screamed, treatments commenced and realizations surfaced. Therapy for my soul and mind were found in mosaics. I had always admired the media; my husband supported my interest and insisted I give it a try. Self-taught through the help of books and friends' advice, I became immersed. Ten years later, the passion to create and the desire to stay healthy is joined in a marriage of determination. The direction of my art is constantly in motion. The freedom that the media allows is alarming: the reason I love it so. As Ralph Waldo Emerson summarizes: "Artists must be sacrificed to their art. Like bees, they must put their lives into the sting they give." Bzzzzzzzzzzzz
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