I was born in 1949 in Port Arthur, Texas. Growing up on the Texas coast, I spent a lot of time at the beach and fishing with my Dad, and grew to love the ocean and seashore. I graduated in 1972 from Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas with a Bachelor of Science degree in Fine Art. In 1973, I moved to Austin, and took a job with the State of Texas, where I received training in cartography (mapmaking). I spend the next 15 years drawing maps, and another 15 years in management and sales of digital maps and software.

To supplement my income in the early days of my career as a cartographer, I spent evenings and weekends doing freelance graphic design for local businesses, including the fledgling Austin music industry. I had the opportunity to create and publish music posters for local venues, including Willie Nelson’s Austin Opry House. Several of my posters are now in the permanent collection of the University of Texas Center for American History in Austin.

During my years as a graphic designer and cartographer, I spent my time on weekends painting watercolors, and joined Austin's Waterloo Watercolor Group. My work earned several awards at the Group's annual exhibitions, and traveled to national shows, including the National Watercolor Society Annual Exhibition, and the American Realism Exhibition.

In 1983, I married Julian "Kent" Jacobson. Kent and I spent our honeymoon in Cozumel, Mexico where I had my first opportunity to snorkel and observe the colorful marine life of a tropical coral reef. I fell in love with the ocean all over again, and Kent and I began to travel to tropical places every chance we got. We received our scuba certification in 1994, and I immediately began photographing marine life.

I have taken thousands of photos of marine life which provide endless inspiration for my paintings. I have had both my underwater and topside images published in travel guides, calendars, brochures, and as fine art prints in both corporate and private collections. If you would like to see some of my photographic images, visit www.cdislands.com.

In 1998, Kent and I bought a small "fixer upper" home on St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. After much toil and sweat, we have transformed it into our little dream home by the sea, and we hope to live there full time someday. Meanwhile we divide our time between our St. John House, Blue Heaven Rendezvous and our home on 7th Street in Austin. In 2001, I left my full-time job as a high-tech marketing executive to start a new career in fine art.

We participate in frequent dive expeditions to study and photograph marine life, and a percentage of my sales are donated to coral reef conservation organizations.

All works on this web site © Pauline Walsh Jacobson. All rights reserved worldwide, unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.