Cindy’s love for art began at an early age. She took private art lessons through high school and then earned a B.S. in Art Education and later a Master’s in Education. However, her career as an artist has been on again off again through the years. In the ‘70s and ‘80s she volunteered for mission work in Africa. Upon returning to the States, she immersed herself in art in both California and Oklahoma demonstrating and speaking to small and large art organizations, hanging in galleries, winning numerous professional awards, taking 36 hours of graduate level art classes, and selling work by commissions and through showings. However, needing a living wage, she entered a career in teaching English as a Second Language. This brought her to San Antonio where she worked at Defense Language Institute at Lackland AFB for 17 years. Although she continued her portrait work for commissions and exhibited in a few places, her ESL career took most of her time, energy and effort. Having recently retired from that career, she has now returned to art with a renewed eagerness.
Portraiture is Cindy’s specialized field although she admits she loves still lifes as well. Her style comes from studying Impressionism in her early years with renowned artist Dick Goetz in Oklahoma City. Abstract Impressionism, personified in Nicolai Fechin, is her favorite style with Fauvism a close second. She loves to use brilliant colors as well as subtle varieties. Pastels are her favorite medium. When asked how long it takes to do one of her vibrant portraits, she likes to say, “Fifty years!” It has taken her 50 years of experience to get to the level of skill that she now has. And she expects she will be increasing her skills for another 50 years!
Cindy’s art name is “Sindisiwe” which she adopted when she lived in Africa. She loves teaching art and giving demonstrations. Her collections are found in homes around the world.