At the age of 13 I knew, I wanted to be an artist. Growing up in Kansas City, Missouri had many cultural advantages. I grew up thinking that the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art was my private Art collection. The museum had a children's movie every Saturday. I would sneak out of the movie and tour the museum on my own. I grew up thinking Peter Paul Rubens, El Greco, Monet, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Gainsborough and Constable were just a few of my personal art instructors.

Just before I turned 18 I started working at Hallmark Greeting Cards as a Finished Artist. I also took Art courses from the Kansas City Art Institute. I did freelance illustration and graphic artwork while raising a family of three children and running a household. I realized that a college education was necessary for a woman to succeed financially in a man's world. I enrolled at Longview junior-college in 1970 and majored in Biology. I graduated from the University Missouri Kansas City in 1976 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology/ Chemistry.

I wanted a Real Job, in the Real World, to make Real Money. No matter what distractions I have in life, I always draw and paint.

In 1984 I moved to Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico which is a four hour drive south of Tucson, Arizona. I loved every part of Mexico, the colors, the culture and the people. Mexico in the 1980s was an artist's dream. Subjects just came knocking at my door. With a full-time maid I had plenty of time to paint. After leaving Mexico in 1989 I moved to Dearborn Michigan where I took a Lithography Print Class just for fun. It was here that I acquired my hundred-year-old Proof Press.

In 1990 I moved to Cleveland, Ohio which has an excellent Art Museum. I soon had my friends joining me on excursions to Art Museums. We also played a lot of tennis and racquetball.

In 1995 I went to live in Mexico City, Mexico for six months. In the fall of 1995 I moved to Lake Martin in Dadeville, Alabama. I love living on a lake with lots of wildlife. As an artist I use my maiden name of Barnard. Some of my other interests are swimming, boating, reading and critter watching.

I've been fortunate enough to travel and live in many places and hope to continue traveling. Drawing is important to all artists. I never trace or project a reference. I use only my own personal references. I do not accept art commissions.