Julia was born in The Hague, Netherlands in 1945. Her love of flowers came from her mother, whose father sold fresh flowers from a wooden cart in the streets of Harlem, NLD. Her father was an artist who designed fur coats and loved the Dutch Master paintings.

 

Her family came to America in October 1950 to settle in the Pasadena, California. Julia had a long career in banking in the Bay Area and Reno, Nevada. She now lives near her children in Berkeley and has a lush garden.

 

Julia has said her watercolors improved 100% under the tutelage of Mary Harden, a professional botanical artist and teacher. She gets excited by each new painting because her realism skills and advanced techniques are growing with each piece.