Art, Architecture and Design

Ever since childhood, I've been captivated by the colors and shapes found in nature. This fascination has guided my artistic journey through multiple creative careers.

I studied Interior Design at Brigham Young University, which led me to found Laura's Interior — now Boardman Art & Design. My practice centered on residential and commercial design specification of custom finish, color, space planning, flooring, and art.

In the 1990s, shifts in the market, from emerging technology to big-box retail and ready-made products, disrupted my small business. The timing coincided with my husband's teaching appointment in Europe, and I took the opportunity to immerse myself in the continent's design culture, observing firsthand how architects, designers, and artists collaborate to produce truly custom work.

When I returned home, I closed my design offices and went back to school. In 2004, I earned a BFA in Painting and Drawing from the University of Utah, and turned my attention to exhibitions in galleries and museums.

Gallery work nourished me as an artist, but I found myself missing the human dimension of collaborative projects. In 2013, I began creating commissioned work through the Salt Lake Art Center (now UMOCA) and rediscovered something I hadn't realized I'd been missing: the joy of working directly with clients to bring a shared vision to life. That work lets me do what I love most, drawing on both my design foundation and my fine art training at the same time.