masonscreations



Me painting "View From the Sellwood Bridge, September 2010. Photo taken by Don Klover donkloverphotography.com

I grew up in Western Massachusetts and it was there I was exposed to the beauty of the Pioneer Valley area, the Connecticut River and its tributaries, old bridges, run down mills and factories, and variety of trees, while out exploring after school. In my family it often made more sense to make the things we needed instead of buying them, and still does. It was common for the results to have lots of beauty in looking slightly asymmetrical, like they were made by human hands rather than mass produced. I grew to have an appreciation for scenes and life forms that typically go unnoticed, rather than the popular glamorous ones. Later on this concept influenced my art.

While at UMass Amherst pen and ink/watercolors quickly became my favorite medium to express what I enjoyed in the scenes I happened upon, and the 3-D glass art was great for single objects like plants and insects I’d see in those places. I graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Art and moved to nearby Vermont to start my stained glass business, then to Oregon to focus on my watercolors. Both places I find eerily similar and inspiring.