Drawing has always been my primary means of expression. The images I make have always been narrative, and my interest in storytelling eventually led me toward writing and illustrating picture books for children.
I earned a B.F.A. in painting at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign in 1979, and an M.F.A. in painting and drawing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1983.
Since then I've taught drawing at various colleges and universities and retired as a full professor at Iowa State University in 2024. I coordinated the foundation drawing curriculum for the College of Design and taught advanced courses in narrative drawing and character design in the Department of Art and Visual Culture.
I now practice as a full-time artist and grandparent and live happily with my family in Iowa.