Penny was the spry age of 4 when someone asked what she wanted to be when she grew up. Promptly and confidently, she replied “an artist.” Feeling like the luckiest woman on the planet, Penny has fulfilled this dream. Her focus is on the joy of the process, and leading by example so that her children may also chase after and realize their dreams.

Following years of art lessons, classes, and a degree in graphic design, Penny moved from the cornfields of Illinois to Atlanta, where she toiled in the fast-paced world of advertising. Over 17 years, she was employed by and freelanced within Atlanta’s top ad agencies as a graphic designer, art director, and creative director – all the while sketching, painting and continuing art classes.

The bleak economic situation turned out to be a strange blessing as Penny veered away from advertising. She was offered studio space within her favorite gallery in Decatur, Georgia. She discovered the freedom and healing that comes from intuitive painting, then stumbled across the ancient technique of encaustic painting. Today, Penny revels in the process of sweeping and dripping and scrapping layers of translucent wax and oils, transforming this magical medley into luscious abstractions of nature.