Painting in plein air is what I do best—alone or surrounded by crowds. I sit in the flatbed of a pick-up, painting open fields and salt marshes and fighting against wind. I stand on a crowded street in Philadelphia and paint the bustling Italian bakery across the street. Painting is my passion; it is what I do. My work is done in two different mediums, but I treat both in the same way. I paint with my watercolors as I do my oils; straight out of the tubes. Intense color in the watercolors is achieved by this technique. I’m equally rewarded by both styles. I’m a Kentucky girl and bluegrass music, colorful quilts, and big skies with bright green rolling hills are in my blood. My childhood home was in an historic Victorian Louisville neighborhood and my paintings today continue to reflect my love of fanciful architectural details, color, and open landscape. My father and grandfather spent most of their lives in Nigeria, and my love of brilliant color, pattern, and tilt toward abstraction come from the West African sculptures and paintings that decorated my childhood home. I’m a prolific and fast painter and create detailed renderings of local scenes quickly. Big paper and big canvases are my loves.