ABOUT SANDY

As a plein-air and  studio painter I am inspired by open spaces, light and color, the scale of the natural world to man made objects, the majesty of mountains, the energy of sky, and reflections upon water. 

I love painting from life, sometimes returning to a site several times to complete a painting. I also paint small plein-air sketches and “studies” that I refer to, along with a few photos I have taken, and create larger paintings in my studio.

 I was born and raised in Southern California and grew up camping in the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the beaches, and along the Colorado River. It was there that I developed a love of the natural world and open spaces.  

I was first introduced to plein-air painting in a class taught by Hank Pitcher and Bruce Tiffany through the College of Creative Studies at University of California Santa Barbara. For several summer weekends we camped and painted the landscape at Sedgwick Reserve in the Santa Inez Mountains. There are many artists I have learned from by taking workshops and by reading and studying, and I am grateful for their generosity. 

Currently I live in Seattle, Washington. I am a member of PAWA (Plein Air Washington Artists).