In creating her artwork in oils, Tricia uses a palette knife and “an extreme amount of paint” for rich color and bold strokes to Her approach to other mediums yields equally intriguing results. She alternates between oils, recycled metal assemblage, vibrant acrylic drip paintings.

Tricia has also created an entire world of fanciful, whimsical children’s characters – “The Land of the Buzzlewics” and the “Zoppyzeeps”. The result of these fun characters has been a book, puzzles, coloring books, trading cards and prints.

For the recycled angels: old rusty metal, bits of twisted wire, broken pottery, smashed forks and spoons and bottle caps, plus rusty bolts, nails, and nuts are just a few of the items Tricia calls "treasures." As she walks, bikes, explores, she finds objects that may look like discarded junk to most people, but to Tricia's artistic eye, each piece is a part of a puzzle making up a recycled masterpiece.

Tricia, past director of the Rose Gallery of Fine Arts in Joplin, earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Painting from Missouri State University in Springfield. She finds that the same abilities that sustained her through 27 years as a newspaper graphic artist for the Joplin Globe — working rapidly, thinking quickly, designing on a moment’s notice — continue to fuel her creative style. As she says, “Inspiration comes from everything that surrounds me, and those years gave me the edge to take chances, to be spontaneous.”.

Lemon Oak is also featuring Tricia's husband, Richard Courtney, who is an experienced children's illustrator. He is well known for his work with Thomas the Train books for children.