Mary Bell Steffen Header

For easy exploring, my work is within three galleries, Landscapes, Places, and Animals. All paintings are oil on canvas.


Quiet on the Intracoastal

Landscapes

Trout Dinners

Places

Tippity Top Glacier Park Ram

Animals


Cabbage or China

 

Work in Progress

Above is my current work in progress, which is the second in a new series, Faraway Places. This is a work from my recent trip to South America, in particular, Montevideo, Uruguay. The image is a colorful marketplace in the middle of town on a sultry day. The piece is 24"x18" and is cold wax and oil on canvas. 

Passing Storm on the Intracoastal

 

My Working Process

Painting is an observation. One often passes through the landscape or a place often without recognizing its’ uniqueness, emotion, or imagination. Traveling along our chosen path every day, taking what we see for granted. One fails to realize that these images will become important elements in our memories. Reflecting upon a landscape that I have recently passed through, or recalling one from childhood, brings me images to paint. The colors and shapes are strong, yet often fragmented images in my mind. The “snapshots” when melded together may tell a story, create a mood, or recall a memory. Many of the final paintings result from sketches made while riding through the landscape. The motion forces me to draw quickly, without apprehension. The sketches are fresh and filled with movement. These sketches are transformed and blended together to create paintings in my studio. I search for a sense of place, how I relate to it, and the emotions and memories which it evokes. I learn to explore my place in the world; where I have been, and where I want to go, both physically and emotionally.