I Painted this en plein air on the Mendocino headland while dodging water drops and having to pack it in and return the next day but no worries. I'm house sitting nearby while taking care of a fellow painter's cat "Smokey." I have a week to create a strong body of the coastal water and probably my favorite subject. Classically trained in animation and illustration, I chose the life of a fine art painter 17 years ago. I see painting compositions of light / shadow and color in everyday life. The more I paint, the more I want to paint and I'm only getting better! Awards- -Sonoma Salute to the Arts 2006 (2nd Place) -California Art Club Wild Things Show (2007 Juror’s Choice Award) -Laguna Plein Air Painters Association Best of Plein Air (2008-2nd Place) -Carmel Art Festival Plein Air Event 2008 (Emerging Artist) and (Honorable Mention) -Carmel Art Festival 2009-(Best Quick Draw) and (Honorable Mention) -Estes Park “Painting the Parks” Plein Air Competition and Show 2009 (Best of Show) -Carmel Art Festival Plein Air Event 2011 (Honorable Mention) -Frank Bette Center for the Arts 2011 (PAPO Award) -Estes Park “Painting the Parks” Plein Air Competition and Show 2011 (Best Quick Draw) -Dana Gallery “Icons of the west” Wyoming 2011 (Honorable Mention) -Sebastopol Center for the Arts “Not Just a Landscape” 2013 (Merit Award) -Shelter Cove Plein Air at the Lost Coast 2014 (Best of Show) -Carmel Art Festival 2017-( Mayor's choice award) Publications- Sterling has been featured as an Artist to Watch in - ---Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine October issue 2009 (Outdoor Painter) Plein Air Magazine Newsletter September 7th 2011. American Art Collector Magazine April 2015 - issue 114 Shows juried by Sterling- "Prairies to Peaks" Cheyenne WY. 2011 Gallery Representation- -Carmel Fine Art Gallery, Carmel by the Sea. Education- -San Francisco Academy of Art summer semester 1986 -Bachelor of Science in Graphic Design / Emphasis of Animation with a minor in industrial design, San Jose State 2002.