MaryAnn has been studying and practicing art since the late 1960’s. She currently belongs to and participates in the Watercolor Art Society of Houston, Visual Art Alliance, First Frontier Collage Society, and Lone Star Art Guild art shows, winning various ribbons and awards at each. She is past President of Visual Arts Alliance, Northwest Art League and "Lone Star Art Guild" which is an organization representing approximately 15 Art groups located throughout Southeast Texas. She has held numerous other positions with all of these organizations.

MaryAnn has an intense love of art, which she expresses and promotes through her continuous support of these organizations. Her studying has consisted of taking courses at formal educational institutions as well as specialized tutorial sessions with various experts.

Mary Ann is a firm believer that "practice is the best learning tool", and this has enabled her to become proficient in a variety of medium. For several years she has conducted workshops and given demonstrations of her art techniques in Houston and surrounding towns. She also donates numerous pieces of her work each year to various worthwhile charity auctions. She has participated in the Houston Art Crawl, Bayou City art festival, Houston International, Woodlands, Conroe, Kingwood, Galveston and Heights art festivals over the years. Her work has made its way to various states across this country and Europe. She has also been associated with numerous galleries over the years.

ARTIST PHILOSOPHY: THE ONLY FAILURE IS NOT TO TRY

I started my artistic career depicting reality in nature and life and have evolved to a more abstract representation of that reality. I view my work as an exciting journey into the unknown. With each step I have unlimited choices to reach my final destination. That end then becomes my new beginning. I feel I can explore my creativity to the fullest when I work this way. Working in a variety of mediums enables me to constantly explore new possibilities and to push the composition to the limit. Recycling my artwork by tearing, cutting, repainting, making my own paper and treating various other papers with a variety of art supplies, and also using found objects, has allowed me to expand and explore different ways of presenting my love of man and nature through collage.

By doing this I am trying to present another dimension to the viewer in an interesting manner - working intuitively, linking one idea to the next as I progress toward a finished peice. This method enables me to keep my work fresh and creative. Early in my career Edgar Degas and then later Robert Rauschenberg has been most influential in my work - giving me permission to try anything.

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