My favorite type of art to create is pet portraits and landscapes, whether I'm working in digitally or with traditional mediums. I find with pet portraits, I love the challenge of trying to capture the beauty and expression of a soul, that sparkle that really makes them who they are. In landscapes, I find an incredible amount of freedom to really play and experiment with techniques and colors that I don't necessarily find in portrait work.

I find inspiration everywhere - the sky while I'm driving or hiking, the rolling hills of pastures and crop land along the way, the wildlife and livestock living in them, my own pets and their antics, I'm always absorbing and cataloging images for later when I can pull them up and translate them onto screen or canvas. I'm constantly inspired by artists of different kinds as well - I appreciate social media so much for enabling us all to share our different styles and techniques with the world.

I would use the $25,000 to explore and expand my knowledge and experience so I can continue to grow and evolve as both an artist and as an aspiring art business owner. I'd pour every cent back into my craft - be it in art classes, new mediums, or upgrades for my studio and equipment that would enable me to create and share more of my work and have more freedom to chase my dream of my art becoming my full time career.