Macular Degeneration and Me

In March of 2019, I was diagnosed with Age Related Dry Macular Degeneration (AMD). I have a dark spot, kind of like a fingerprint, in the middle of my right eye. In this area of my vision, straight lines appear crooked when looking through the spot. However, my left eye and my brain (yes, I have one, so it seems) compensate and I usually don't notice it.

Once diagnosed, nothing can be done to undo the damage. All I can do is try to prevent further damage, and the science behind that isn't really clear either: avoid UV light, eat anti-oxidants.... I am doing all I can to be healthy.

No one can tell me if or when the AMD will progress. I know people who have lost their vision, and people who have had little change, even into their 90's. Because of the uncertainly, for the last 18 months, I've focused on the model railroad. 

I'm still painting, and will continue to paint, but not for profit. I closed my business. I love painting, but now I paint gifts and donations.

​Below is a painting I recently completed at the request of Sergeant Brenda Harrington of the Santa Rosa Police Department's Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Team, in honor of Marylou Armer, who tragically passed away from COVID-19 on March 31, 2020. I worked with Marylou before I retired in 2007, and her face is stuck in my memory, a huge smile spending across her face. She was a kind soul who is dearly missed.

Below is a "commission" that our friends, Ian and Kelly Gordon, asked me to paint. In exchange for the art, Ian and Kelly made a very generous donation to the Redwood Empire Food Bank. 

Below is a painting I completed for good friends Mike and Charlotte, who lost my art in the Tubbs Fire.​ 

Soon, I will be offering my first "tryptich," or one painting completed on three panels. My good friend, Tom Schwedhelm, borrowed the art to hang in his office after he was elected as Mayor of the City of Santa Rosa. His term is ending, and I am going to give this tryptich to someone on my list, in exchange for their donation to the Redwood Empire Food Bank.