What is your favorite type of art to create?

I’m a dabbler at heart, so there isn't one specific medium or subject matter I stick to. Exploration is my real passion, and getting my hands dirty makes the work feel like an extension of myself. I love the raspy grit of a charcoal stroke when I’m processing something heavy, or the buttery texture of hand-blended pastels when I’m feeling light. Half the time, I’m not even creating for an audience; I’m just making something to capture a feeling I can’t quite put into words.

Where do you find inspiration?

At the risk of sounding cheesy, inspiration usually finds me. It hits me in the middle of everyday life—the chartreuse glow of my cat’s eyes, the freckles on a pear, or the weathered patina of an old workbench. I’m especially drawn to the human form: the line of a neck as someone tosses back their head, the strength in a pair of hands, or the pull of a blanket falling to expose a woman’s back. I love the "perfectly imperfect" details most people might walk right past.

What would you do with $25,000?

I have a few big ideas bouncing around in my head, and this would be the jump start I need to bring them to life. Beyond my own work, it’s a dream of mine to bring more local art and immersive artistic events to my community. I’d love to create a social place where entertainment and the arts collide. A creative playground that exposes people to art who might not have sought it out on their own—somewhere approachable, unpretentious, and the kind of place people actually want to spend time in.