I was born in California and raised in Ohio.  I had always wanted to be an artist; somehow, I ended up studying criminal justice and in 1985, had become a Deputy Sheriff in Durham County, North Carolina.

By 1990, I was a Durham City Police Officer, married, and expecting my first child.  I left the department and became a Reserve Officer so that I could stay home as a full time mom.  After my second child was born and old enough to start school, I worked as a substitute teacher.  This, of course, became a full time job for four more years.  During this time I worked with small children as an assistant and just loved it. 

One day, I ran out to sign my own kids up for camp at the Durham Arts Council.  My best friend talked me into taking a class too.  She knew how much I loved art.  I took an abstract, mixed media class, and I was hooked.  I loved acrylic paints and mixing them with ink.

I left my job the next year, turned my family room into an art studio, and haven’t stopped painting since.

Margaret Pickett