I am an independent artist from Des Moines, Iowa. I received my BFA and MFA degrees from Drake University. I have shown my work extensively in regional shows and have worked in a widening circle of private and public collections in the Midwest. Public collections include: Sprint Corporation in Kansas City, The Iowa Clinic, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Maytag Company, Grinnell College, ING USA Annuity and Life, Boone Community College, Sioux City Art Center, Farm Bureau of Iowa, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and Hotel Pattee in Perry.
Let me know what you think of my work: smkmisol@mchsi.com
No pictures or images may be downloaded or copied without the Artist's express written permission. Copyright @2009 Mary Kline-Misol.
My imagery revolves around figurative subjects, compositions, botanicals, and landscapes. My still life works incorporate ethnic objects, such as puppets and ceramic figures, that I personify with their placement in the compositions. I strive for a portrait like quality in my figurative works. I am influenced by literature, myth and poetry and I draw on all three for inspiration. My botanicals include the indigenous flora and fauna that grow and thrive in my woods.
In the quiet seclusion of my studio I have become familiar with aspects of myself that I can not reach in any other way. Perhaps the dedication to my work has become in some sense a ritual of psychic renewal for me. Joseph Campbell, a great thinker of our time, has stated that as one ages one realizes the interference daily societal demands put upon our lives - demands which diffuse our sense of self. Thus an individual must find a quiet place, or a "bliss-station", in which there are no outside distractions. Within this space, one can rediscover the radiance that comes from the "Thou Feeling" for life. My time spent in the studio is this sort of experience for me.
My work has an anti-naturalistic tendency, but does not reject external reality altogether. The emotional content in the work lies within the urge to create images particular to my personal experience.
The paintings are produced spontaneously, with images unfolding as the work progresses. Figures and objects frequently emerge, only to be hidden under subsequent layers of paint as I attempt to catch that elusive moment that will communicate my inner vision. I create a static stage in which images seem to be frozen in time. Figures are caught in momentary reverie suggesting a moment when the Muse bridges the gap between reality and the transcendental.
Curriculum Vitae