About Me.
I have always been drawn to the quiet theater of ordinary life: the way light rests on a table, the posture of someone lost in thought, the subtle choreography of family and home. Growing up in East Brunswick, New Jersey, those early observations led me to study painting and sculpture at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where I learned to trust the language of oil paint and the discipline of close looking.
​
After graduation, I lived and worked in New York City for twenty years, building a career in portraiture and contemporary realism. My work has been featured in Artist Daily, Fine Art Connoisseur, Craftsy, The Figurative Artist’s Handbook, and on the television show Madam Secretary, and is also included in the Bennett Collection and private collections nationwide. Alongside my studio practice, I’ve curated exhibitions, supported public sculpture projects, and continue to serve on the board of New York Artists Equity Gallery.
​
During Covid, I returned to New Jersey to raise my family and opened a studio in Red Bank, where I paint commissioned portraits and teach drawing and painting classes. Whether working with a family on a portrait or mentoring a young artist, I value the relationships at the heart of the creative process.
My work centers on interiors, still life, and portraiture—images that appear calm but carry emotional depth beneath the surface. At its core, my practice is about slowing down, observing closely, and honoring the people and moments that shape our lives.
CV
Select Exhibitions:
2025 Gallery 14C, That’s Not Right, Jersey City
2025 Memento Mori, Equity Gallery, NYC
2024 Periphia, Gallerie Lucida, Red Bank, NJ
2024 Museum Show: New Jersey Arts Annual, Exploring Our Connections, Montclair Art Museum, NJ
2024 In Stillness, Thompson Park Art Gallery, Lincroft, NY
2024 Mother Father, Equity Gallery, NY, NY
2023 New York Figurative Show, Winner, Salmagundi Club, NY, NY
2021 The Portrait Gallery, Equity Gallery, NY, New York
2021 Art in the Times of Covid, Atlantic Highlands Arts Council, NJ
2021 The Male Nude: Turning the Gaze,Equity Gallery, New York, NY; curated by Michael Gormley and Peter Trippi
2020 The Plein Air Collection, Equity Gallery, NY, New York
2014 ‘Behind Narrative’, One Art Space, NY, NY
2013 ‘Surface Beauty’ Solo Show, Dacia Gallery, New York
2013 Egeli Gallery, Provincetown, Mass
2013 Nocturnes, National Arts Club, New York
2013 Single Fare, RH Gallery, New York
2012 Brooklyn Fashion Weekend, Brooklyn, New York
2011 Take Home Nude, New York Academy of Art, NY
2011 Gowanus Ballroom ‘Paintworks’ Brooklyn, New York
2011 Gowanus Ballroom ‘Spring 2011 Art and Architecture Show' Brooklyn, New York
2010 Huntington Arts Council ‘Art of the Portrait’ Huntington, NY
2010 The Oyster Bay Historical Society & The Roslyn Landmark Society Benefit Auction, Twinight, Centre Island, NY
2009 Chase Edwards Contemporary Fine Art ‘Rising Stars of Contemporary Realism’, Oyster Bay, NY
2009 Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary & Audubon Center Benefit Auction Oyster Bay, NY
2008 Atlanta Art Gallery ‘Jacob Collins and the Water Street Atelier’
2008 Meredith Long & Company ‘The Water Street Atelier’ Houston, Texas
2008 Bendhann Art Gallery ‘Artists of the Water Street Atelier’ Lutherville, Maryland
2003 Rosemary P. Miller Gallery ‘National Society of Arts and Letters Competition’, Bloomington, IN
2002 Gross McCleaf Gallery ‘New Talent Exhibition’ Philadelphia, PA
2002 Bowery Gallery ‘Annual Juried Show’ New York, New York
2001 The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts ‘Annual Student Exhibition’, Philadelphia, PA
2000 The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts ‘Annual Student Exhibition’, Philadelphia, PA
Curatorial:
2024 ‘WAAM Summer City Invatational’ Equity Gallery NYC
2013 ‘Body Politic’ National Arts Club, New York
2011 ‘Longest Night’ Gowanus Ballroom, Brooklyn
2011 ‘Paintworks’ Gowanus Ballroom, Brooklyn
Education:
2004-2008 The Water Street Atelier, (Grand Central Academy) New York, NY
1998-2002 The Egeli Portrait Workshops, Edgewater, MD
1997-2001 The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA, BFA
1996-1999 The Cape Cod School of Art, Provincetown, MA
Teaching:
2024 The Barn Studio, Millville NJ
2020- present Thompson Park Art Center, Monmouth County, NJ
2009 - 2016 The Teaching Studios of Art, Oyster Bay and Brooklyn, New York
2008 - 2016 Private Instructor for the Centre Island Painting Group, Oyster Bay, NY
2007-2008 The Stevenson Academy Of Fine Art, Oyster Bay, New York
2006-2008 The Grand Central Academy of Art, New York, NY
2003-2004 John Waldron Arts Center, Bloomington, IN
Selected Awards:
2023 New York Figurative Show, First Place, Salmagundi Club, NY, NY
2021 Portrait Society Members Only Competition, Honorable Mention
2003 National Society of Arts and Letters, Bloomington Career Chapter Award
2003 Vermont Studio Center, Full Fellowship
