b. 1943. 

For as far back as she can remember, Lori always had a passion for art. She began drawing as soon as she could hold a pencil and studied oil painting and pastels with esteemed Michigan artist/teacher Isabel Rix.

In the 1970's, Lori traveled with the Ice Capades for five years. Frustrated that she had to give up oil painting because it took so long for the paint to dry, she decided to give fast-drying acrylics a try. That was when she learned to loosen up a bit because acrylics dry very fast. But, it worked out great. She could work on a painting, throw it into her suitcase and lug it to the next city. She also did a lot of drawing during that period because that would also pack well.

Lori bought a good Nikon SLR camera with several lenses and became very involved with photography while traveling across the United States and Canada. She photographed scenes from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to the Hawaiian Islands. After five years of Nomadic living,  Lori left the road, settled into her own place and became a full-time photographer. She purchased an enlarger and all the requisite paraphernalia and converted a bedroom into a darkroom. Although she didn't like the mole-like ambiance of the darkroom, she felt the end results were worth it.

In the 1980's, while continuing with her work as a photographer, Lori developed an interest in computer graphics. She bought a scanner and printer and used the computer as her "easel" and various computer software as her "light room." By this time, she had an energetic son to raise, so it was important to be with him and out of the dark.

In the 1990's, combining her photography skills with computer graphics, Lori started a graphic design business in an office attached to her home. After a while, Lori missed painting and decided it was time to start again. She already had many photographs that would translate nicely to paintings.

Like most artists, Lori is fascinated by light and shadow and how they interact. Her husband says he looks at the world a lot differently now because she is always pointing out things he never noticed before. In addition to landscapes, seascapes and still life, she also loves to paint portraits and scenes with people and/or animals.

Lori's medium of choice is acrylic, but she also dabbles in watercolor, pastels, oil, pencil, pen and ink or whatever is available. She likes to paint from photographs because they capture the light or scene as as it is at that moment, but then she draws from her memory or whim to complete the painting.

Below is an early morning, before espresso, self-portrait sketch (pencil/pen/wash).