About my Aspen Leaf Logo

My educational background is in forestry, and before becoming a full time painter, I used to research aspen trees in northern Alberta. 

I see aspens as a symbol of community; what appears to be one single tree is part of a larger individual that can stretch for hundreds of miles, connected through the roots underground. These amazing stands can live for tens of thousands of years, and may be the largest living things on our planet.  

As a self taught artist, I am part of a larger community of artists learning from each other across space and time, supported by the even larger community of people who love art. Thank you for being part of this journey, supporting my development across different mediums and making it possible for me to do what I love most.

When I finished forestry school in British Columbia, I earned a silver ring and took an oath to be a steward of the land, an oath that I still take seriously in my new career. I want to honour that promise and remember my connection to trees in my work.

As a cancer survivor, I feel motivated to use my art to raise funding for conservation nonprofits. I have raised over $50K so far for nonprofits with my small business, and would like to reach $100K in my lifetime.

2021 Logo Update

In 2021, as I approached the halfway mark of my fundraising goal, I updated my logo to include a new element. The veins of the aspen leaf are now the branches of my grandmother’s elm tree. My artist grandmother Annie was a hardworking farm wife and self-taught artist who loved to paint trees.

She passed away from cancer before I was born, but her elm painting (above) hung in my room when I was little, and I used to play under this elm tree on her farm. Among many things, I inherited her left handedness, her migraines, and her love for the forest. Though we never met, I want to remember her in the work I am doing now.