A little about me

Some people say you are born with the ability to be an artist, or not. If that is so, then being an artist is a gift for which I am very grateful. I believe we all have that creative spark, no matter how it manifests itself, whether it is in drawing, painting, decorating a room or knowing what colors work well together in an outfit. We all can nurture that gift.

I love to paint. I’ve been self-taught for most of my life and was inspired and taught by Bob Ross, Bill Alexander, Dorothy Dent, Kevin Hill, Robert Warren and Gary Jenkins, master artists teaching many different methods of painting. I grew up watching them on PBS and the internet over the years and taking classes from them in person.

At one time I earned my living by traveling the United States selling country and Victorian-style home decorating accessories. What a blast that was! I painted on everything from fabric, to wood, to metal, and of course, canvas. However, when the economy tanked, and with the responsibility of having two children to support, I had to take a creative detour.

I shifted my career into graphic design. For more than 2 decades I’ve successfully earned a living in graphic and web design in the advertising and marketing departments of various companies. I’ve got pieces of paper with degrees and certificates that say what I already knew…I’m born to create.

I’m thankful for my success and although I still keep my hand in designing websites and other collateral graphics,  I’m thrilled to be focusing more on my first love, working with oil paints. I recently became a Bob Ross Certified Instructor and teach at several venues. I want to help others explore their creativity by teaching oil painting and offer local oil painting classes.

I’d love to hear from you. Tell me what art means to you. Also, please sign up on the mailing list and I’ll keep you posted when I’ve added classes, videos and new pieces to the studio.

Thank you for visiting. Bookmark this page and visit again soon.

All the best,

Gini Deaton (FYI: Gini is pronounced Ginny and is short for Virginia)