“Surfacing” • Original; Watercolor on canvas • 10.01.04
Ascender’s Watercolors

How and why did you become an artist?

Early on I found that each act of creating art was catharsis. Not only could I clear emotions; but I could use it to speak for me. I felt that I was successful with it when I could provide my viewer with just a glimpse of that emotional action – that it expressed for them; that it spoke for them. I found that I needed it; and began to accept that others needed it as well.

How has your style evolved? Have you deliberately tried to develop a personal ’signature’ style?

I don’t think that I deliberately developed a signature style; it was more of a journey that I took and my style changed as I journeyed. It is still changing.

Initially I graduated with a Fine Arts degree in Interior Design; I was vice president of the student American Society of Interior Designers – however; it wasn’t the fluffing of pillows that I enjoyed – it was the perspective renderings. I loved the challenge of being able to perfectly match samples to my renderings; I enjoyed the exact detailed work required in creating perspectives by hand. I did spend ten years doing contract and residential perspective renderings/interior design; for interior designers and later offered line drawings of homes for real estate companies.

Perspective Rendering;
Medium: Watercolor; Pen and India Ink on Crescent Board
Ascender’s Perspective Renderings

When the real estate market bottomed out I expanded my horizons to that of a graphic designer and won over 65 national and local awards in the areas of graphic design and marketing. 10 of the awards were DANDYS which recognize outstanding automotive advertising published in newspapers by franchised automobile dealers; these are usually done by ad agencies – it was unusual for a designer in a newspaper to win one – let alone 10.

Instead of using clip art I began to pull my own line drawings into advertisements and marketing which gave me opportunity to get my art style out into the world.

Line Art; Lunch Items; B/W; pen and fluorescent ink
Ascender’s Illustrations
Ascender’s Graphic Design/Marketing/Awards

What I most took away from this designer job was to master completing detailed work under a deadline; an art unto itself!

I began doing pointillism pieces when I would return home from working on graphic deadlines. The pointillism pieces allowed me to de-stress and again concentrate on the detailed work I had done while doing perspective renderings. I completed a series of American Indian Pointillism and then shifted into concentrating on children’s expressions.

Title:”This Child Lost” Medium: Print; Pointillism; Pen and India Ink
Ascender’s Pointillism
Ascender’s Pointillism now available in her Etsy Store

I moved to California at this point, working on a free lance basis. Intrigued by the assorted art styles I began to challenge myself to self-learn assorted art mediums. Rather then having a subject in mind on what it was that I wanted to create I began to step back and let what was inside come out without judgments or expectations. After the years of mastering commercial art this was extremely cleansing; true catharsis. Doing art in this manner I leave myself open to the infinite creativity. I began to write my illustrated novel at the same time and found many of the topics in my subconscious would pop up into my art. I try to do one such piece a day and in doing so found that I was capturing my journey on paper which resulted in a limitless variety of subject matter and techniques. Because I do this art intuitively, without a topic in mind, I rarely post any until after I have ‘processed’ all that comes up for me while doing a piece. I rarely create a piece of art just because there is a prompt for it.

Title:”Taking it Face On” Medium: Original Oil Pastels, Acrylics on Paper
Ascender’s Oil Pastels

“Blind, Deaf and Dumb” • Dry Pastels on paper • 18″ x 24″ • 02.04.06
Ascender’s Dry Pastels

Title:”Help Yourself” Medium: Original; Collage.
Ascender’s Collages /Mixed Media

I spend months on my Scatterlings© line of art. This self-directed enchantment art combines actual foliage with watercolor and color pencil mediums. Hidden among the actual and rendered foliage are an enchanted assortment of Scatterlings’©; mythical animals and fairies.

These one-of-a-kind folk art pieces take up to a year to complete as flowers and leaves are collected, pressed, preserved and finally hidden within a vision that evolves continually. Although preserved in the same manner as a piece of handmade paper; each original is in essence a ‘live’ piece of art. Each finished vision must be framed immediately to prevent deterioration of the pressed flowers and leaves. Packets of silica gel are placed between the original and the frame to absorb humidity. I am presently looking for a gallery for this set of Scatterlings ©.

Title: “Cascading Colors ©”; Medium: Mixed Media, Pressed Foilage, Watercolor, Colored Pencil, Pen and Ink on Handmade Paper

Detail of “Cascading Colors ©”

Ascender’s Scatterlings©

Do you have any advice to share with other artists?

Challenge yourself and you will continue to grow and succeed as an artist. Don’t become dependent on another source to provide this for you. Life is going to hand you challenges everyday – turn them into your muse.

Contact Information for purchase of prints of any of these pieces. I now take PayPal.