For 32 years I have made a career doing what was once a childhood dream, and am proud to have worked in the animation, themed entertainment, and live action industries. With roots in comic book and fantasy art illustration, my art is also inspired by the golden-age American illustrators like Dean Cornwell and Norman Rockwell, film noir, and impressionists like the California plein air painters. As an artist, it is essential for me to move fluidly throughout different styles, so I am constantly expanding my skill set and learning new processes so that I can best visualize each unique script.

My early career was filled with a multitude of learning, done through countless hours of self-studies, rigorous mentorships while working at Walt Disney Studios, and practical experience by working on various animated films. Particularly close to me is the work I did for “The Lion King” to help refine the designs for Pride Rock and the work I did for the “Be Prepared” scene, and the sequence art I developed for “The Prince of Egypt”’s “Parting of the Red Sea” scene. Within the realm of film, I have worked on many exciting projects like “Umbrella Academy”, “Star Trek: Discovery”, “Guardians of the Galaxy 2”, “Space Jam 2: A New Legacy”, and “Epic Universe for Universal Creative Studios”. I also enjoyed a successful fine art career.  

Throughout my career I have been lucky to work with many amazing artists, writers, and directors. One such project I take pride in having worked as a production designer on is Last Days of Ivory, a short PSA directed by Kathryn Bigelow about the illegal ivory trade, an issue that is especially close to me. While on the project I pushed myself to take new chances with my art, capturing the story’s vision through combining a uniquely simple artistic style with traditional African textile patterns and digital textural qualities that I had only ever achieved with traditional mediums.

I have enjoyed quite a lively teaching career and taught at many local Los Angeles art schools, including Los Angeles Academy for Figurative Art and Art Center College of Design. I also create lessons that cover a comprehensive range of curriculum that is taught through courses I currently sell on Gumroad. No matter the setting or course, my goals and approach while teaching have consistently been the same: to uplift the next generation of artists and help them learn to navigate the challenge of building and maintaining a career in the entertainment industry, and to teach the fundamentals of art without any tricks or shortcuts.

Today, I am more excited than ever to call myself an artist and to be part of the artistic and entertainment communities. There are so many styles and possibilities that have not yet been explored, especially in the realm of animation production design, and I am inspired to be part of discovering them. In a new exploration of creative freedom within my personal artistic journey, I have just begun to finally work towards capturing my inner vision’s ideas. I feel such enthusiasm because of the complete worlds that have yet to be brought to life which I can so clearly see, and am driven by the desire to tap more into these new ideas within my personal work. But, essentially, in all the work I do, I am going back to my roots when building characters and stories to push the limits of my imagination and achieve innovation.