As young as five, Alana drew people and horses, buildings and abstract designs. The happiest childhood hours were those in which her imagination expressed itself on paper and paints enlivened the shapes she saw. Art was her passion then and remains so today.

Spirited by a desire to have her own two wheel bicycle, rather than share one with a sibling, Alana entered a national art contest at the age of nine. First prize was a new bike. With her colored pencils she rendered the subject. As fate would have it, she won second prize - copious art supplies. The sponsor, Kellogg, though impressed by her talent, awarded first prize, the bike, to a boy who had done an oil rendering.

Her mother, a graduate of the Cleveland School of Art, and her father, an engineer from Case Western Reserve, passed their talents to Alana. She tells of her struggle dividing time between the analytical and the artistic. Freshman year of college, she excelled in life drawing, only to graduate with a major in mathematics. Alana entered the field of Capital Project Management, making it a full time career and relegating art to time away from work. Her attention to detail shaped the design and insured successful projects. Her career centered on managing the processes involved in design and construction of buildings. At Harvard University she received awards for historical building preservations within Harvard Yard. At the University of Texas her professional experience created labs and research facilities. Whenever possible, while raising a family, Alana created portraits in pastels and renderings with pen and ink. It was not until 2007, when she joined a group of plein air artists in Italy that she began in earnest painting in oil.

Her portraits show the promise of a seasoned artist and have initiated a full time art career in retirement. Her commissioned works cover both portraiture and renderings. Alana connects with her subjects and clients, understanding their perspective whether about the design of their facilities or an architectural rendering or a family portrait. She strives to capture the essence in each work – the pure expression of the grandest vision.

Member of the  Portrait Society of America