"On any given day I crank up the music (and often dance). Mostly classic rock with a sprinkle of New Age or Blue Grass. Or Classical. Or Folk. Or Alternative. I strive to paint fast and intuitively so I don’t overthink. Just as I do, I'll start a new canvas. Ideally I want several paintings going at once.
I can't imagine a life without art and will continue on this path of creativity until the end. Anyway, I would have been a terrible astronaut."
The long version
Born during the baby boom, Sydney grew up as an only child with a vivid imagination. She lived in several locations including a home in rural Peoria, Ill where she watched farmer Fred ride his white stallion, and visited the horses’ barn. “I loved everything about that barn”.
Her first true art experience was at age five in a summer art class. “I was captivated as the instructor helped me to draw a house”. Throughout many moves and schools, art was her focus. In 1968, the high school basement art room set the stage for nude paintings. At home, she continued to paint large canvases. Her life revolved around art, and cumulated at H.S.graduation with the "Outstanding Student Art Award. Finally, her quest for independence took her and her five-year old daughter to San Francisco. “It was my dream from the sixties, and where I was inspired and realized that I had to remain true to my art.”
In 1985 Pittsburgh, PA became home for 26 years where she matriculated to Chatham and La Roche Universities for degrees in Graphic Design and Professional Writing.
“From my first drawing as a five year old to my current art and everything in-between shaped me into the artist I am now—an old hippie with paint-coated hands and purple hair listening to classic rock while painting nudes. And remember the barn in Peoria? That was the inspiration for my studio name - Purple Barn Studios”.
I can't imagine a life without art and will continue on this path of creativity until the end. Anyway, I would have been a terrible astronaut."
The long version
Born during the baby boom, Sydney grew up as an only child with a vivid imagination. She lived in several locations including a home in rural Peoria, Ill where she watched farmer Fred ride his white stallion, and visited the horses’ barn. “I loved everything about that barn”.
Her first true art experience was at age five in a summer art class. “I was captivated as the instructor helped me to draw a house”. Throughout many moves and schools, art was her focus. In 1968, the high school basement art room set the stage for nude paintings. At home, she continued to paint large canvases. Her life revolved around art, and cumulated at H.S.graduation with the "Outstanding Student Art Award. Finally, her quest for independence took her and her five-year old daughter to San Francisco. “It was my dream from the sixties, and where I was inspired and realized that I had to remain true to my art.”
In 1985 Pittsburgh, PA became home for 26 years where she matriculated to Chatham and La Roche Universities for degrees in Graphic Design and Professional Writing.
“From my first drawing as a five year old to my current art and everything in-between shaped me into the artist I am now—an old hippie with paint-coated hands and purple hair listening to classic rock while painting nudes. And remember the barn in Peoria? That was the inspiration for my studio name - Purple Barn Studios”.
Artist Influences:
Willem De Kooning
Elaine De Kooning
Alice Neel
Isaac Maimon
Judy Chicago
Robert Burridge
Willem De Kooning
Elaine De Kooning
Alice Neel
Isaac Maimon
Judy Chicago
Robert Burridge
Education:
BS Graphic Design (La Roche University, Pittsburgh PA)
MA Professional Writing (Chatham University, Pittsburgh PA)
BS Graphic Design (La Roche University, Pittsburgh PA)
MA Professional Writing (Chatham University, Pittsburgh PA)