Julie Armstrong

Art has been a lifelong love of mine. While in grade school I was inspired by a wonderful teacher to draw and paint, and went on to major in art and literature at Berkeley with an eye toward teaching.

But the type of job I wanted was disappearing from the public schools and life intervened. Jobs in advertising and then a long career in travel followed. I now enjoy enough free time to pursue painting again.

I’m fascinated by the infinite natural palette--the play of light on water, the movement of the sea, the bold colors of high summer and the softness of early light. I work from my own photography (and sometimes from pictures my family has taken on our trips together). I particularly love the north coast of California and have painted many places along the Sonoma coast and around Mendocino. After a lifetime of travel all over the world, that area remains my favorite part of the planet.

Art is about communicating a point of view, conveying a mood, evoking emotion in the viewer. I hope to keep my side of the conversation interesting.