I grew up in Germany and moved to what felt like the “Wild West” when my family relocated to Berthoud, Colorado, when I was eleven. Adjusting to a new country and language wasn't easy, but I found a sense of belonging in two places: the outdoors and art. I discovered oil painting at twelve, and the landscapes and wildlife of Colorado quickly became some of my favorite subjects.

That connection to the West has followed me throughout my life, even when art wasn't my career. I served six years in the U.S. Army while studying Interior Design at the Art Institute of Colorado, always searching for some way to combine creativity with a more practical path.

During the devastating Colorado floods of 2013, I was activated with my Army unit to assist affected mountain communities. I drove a five-ton military truck in the first convoy carrying FEMA personnel into Jamestown after crews carved a narrow route through the destroyed mountain road. A photograph from that mission can still be found at Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park, a tiny soldier overlooking the devastated town below.

After a military injury ended my Army career, I found my way back to the thing that had been there since I was twelve: art!

Today, I paint the wildlife, landscapes, people, and history of the American West in oils and graphite. My background in interior design still influences the way I think about art, not simply as an image on a wall, but as a way to bring a sense of the outdoors, history, and place into a home.

My goal is simple: to capture the closest you’ll ever get to bringing the Rockies home with you.