~ Georgia O’Keefe
Hi there, I’m Mary. Most days you can find me painting in my home studio, listening to music, an audiobook or podcast. I love creating modern and minimalist watercolor and multilayered abstract paintings, that speak to my love of nature, design, and storytelling. The things I am most passionate about in life are my 3 daughters and husband, learning, travel and inspiring creativity in others.
I create paintings for people who are looking for pieces of art that feel modern, fresh and unique. When I’m not painting you can find me cooking and baking with my girls, cuddling with my border collie, gardening, or hitting the road for some traveling inspiration.
My timeline
As a child…
Painting was my first love. I created art all the time as a child, taking classes at Evanston Art Center and going on to paint every day in high school.
20’s
I compiled a portfolio to apply to art school, but instead, decided to pursue another love…acting. I received my BFA from the University of Illinois, theatre conservatory and loved my experience there. Throughout my twenties, I did some theatre, commercials and independent film, occasionally starting a painting, but very rarely creating visual art.
20’s
I compiled a portfolio to apply to art school, but instead, decided to pursue another love…acting. I received my BFA from the University of Illinois, theatre conservatory and loved my experience there. Throughout my twenties, I did some theatre, commercials and independent film, occasionally starting a painting, but very rarely creating visual art.
30’s
When I turned 30 and had my second baby, I found myself at home, with my two children and hungering for an outlet to create. I picked up the paintbrush and never looked back. Painting from my living room, I was quite prolific, creating piece after piece as if they needed to come out of me. A decade of idea and color and story pouring out of my soul, picking up where my 18 year old self left off.
When I Started Painting Again
I began to post pictures of my art onto Facebook, did a show at a local boutique and opened an Etsy shop. Thus, Mary Gaspar Art was born. I took commissions and challenged myself to draw and paint everyday, sharing my work online and selling it from my living room. I joined Instagram in 2013 and began to make connections with other creatives, participating in group art projects which led to fun features like the Creative Block challenge on The Jealous Curator.
It was at this time I discovered my love for watercolor.
When I Started Painting Again
I began to post pictures of my art onto Facebook, did a show at a local boutique and opened an Etsy shop. Thus, Mary Gaspar Art was born. I took commissions and challenged myself to draw and paint everyday, sharing my work online and selling it from my living room. I joined Instagram in 2013 and began to make connections with other creatives, participating in group art projects which led to fun features like the Creative Block challenge on The Jealous Curator.
It was at this time I discovered my love for watercolor.
Photo by We the Classy
Plant Cell 1
After having my third daughter, I was interested in licensing my work. I entered my “Plant Cell 1” into a Minted fine art competition and it was chosen as an Editor’s Pick. Entering that challenge gave literal life to my art business! I was contacted by Property Brothers and able to create a commission for their show. Bloggers and Interior Designers shared my work with their audiences. And now my abstracts live far and wide around the world as both fine art prints and originals, bringing my vision of connection, to fruition.
About my plant cell collection
Botanicals fascinate me. Deep within their cells a whole other complex world awaits. I wanted to portray this microscopic plant life with lines…to create a seemingly minimalist piece of art that contains the depth of whole worlds.
The organic nature of watercolor paint splits and reconnects as it channels through water, much like cells, evolving. These pieces are, at their fundamental level, about connection…to nature, to self and to one another.
