Being raised in the suburbs of west-end Toronto meant a limited exposure to nature, but thankfully, my parents often took us on roadtrips where I found my artistic inspirations among trees, rocks, rivers and lakes. At The Etobicoke School of the Arts I received formal training in art history, drawing, painting, sculpture and music. I was taught how to see as an artist.

It was in Paris, when I was seventeen, that I discovered what would become my passion. The Cathedral of Notre Dame is known for its Gothic architecture and stained glass windows. Designed with incredible brilliance, the Rose Window had a profound effect on me. In the eerie silence of the cathedral the radiant blue and red glass inspired a sense of awe and otherworldliness I had never experienced before. I knew at that moment that I wanted to explore stained glass as a medium. I attended Queen's University in Kingston where I pursued a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree. After studying for two years I experienced what most artists encounter at least once in their careers, "artists block", so I decided to follow my second passion which was environmental science. Although the courses had changed, I never lost touch with the artist in me. If anything, the change brought me to a better understanding of the natural world that I drew my inspiration from. I furthered my environmental education at Sir Sandford Fleming School of Natural Resources in Lindsay, Ontario.

I had never received any formal training in stained glass so most of my work was by trial and error. It was a challenge I gladly took on. I soon found myself limited by traditional stained glass patterns and soon developed my own techniques and designs. The two dimensional patterns lacked the organic flow that I saw in nature. It was in Lindsay that I discovered the use of glass beads and gems. The glass beads, often used as ornamental accents in stained glass panels, allowed me the freedom to re-explore three dimensional space. Copper-foiled beads could be soldered together to form almost any shape. My first "creation" was a spider which evolved into frogs, dragonflies, bees and other winged insects. I began to experiment with mirrors and created candle boxes. I enjoyed playing with reflected light and the flickering candlelight brought patterns and images to life. I have recently discovered glass lamination (bonding one piece of glass to another) to break away from the limitations of copper-foil techniques.

I currently reside in Kingston where I am working as a production technician at an acrylic paint factory. I am still pursuing a career as an environmental technician, but at my core, I will always be an artist.