After being assigned an excercize using circles, I started doodling grapes. I used that as my subject and an obsession was born. I started growing grapes in my garden and sketching grapes in my sketchbook and painting grapes to hang all over my house. Using them as the subject forced me to try different techniques and different palettes than I had worked with previously. It also became a signature for me as most people came to relate me to the grape pictures I couldn't stop producing.