Artist Bio

A third generation Oakland native, I earned a BFA in graphic design at CCAC, later an MA in Art Education. I taught all types of art to kids for many years, now I’m in my studio, working with adult artists with disabilities at NIAD(niadart.org), or teaching occasional workshops. My first picture book, ‘Chinese and English Nursery Rhymes: Stories to Share and Sing’ (Tuttle Publishing) debuted in 2010 and was reissued in 2018. I am now working on a series of picture book biographies on women artists.

Artist Statement

This new series of paintings started with my fascination with clouds. It quickly turned into something else, at the edge of surrealism. Clouds are something we rarely pay much attention to yet are often right there, above us, if we’d only look up. They are visible, then invisible. Transforming constantly, never the same. A metaphor for life.

For the past ten years or so I have been painting almost exclusively in gouache resist. I love printmaking and this gives a look similar to linoleum prints. First I transfer a drawing to watercolor paper. I paint in a thick layer of gouache (opaque watercolor), leaving white space. Next, I cover the entire painting with India ink. When it’s dry, I wash off the ink. The ink soaks into the white spaces I’ve left and the thick gouache resists the ink. I stretch the paper on a board, and then go back in with gouache and touch it up.

My first picture book, Chinese and English Nursery Rhymes: Stories and Songs to Share, Tuttle Publishing, debuted April 2010, and won ‘Best Books of 2010’ award from the Chinese American Library Association.