Rock the Casbah   16 X 29

Mary Kay Neumann, Artist

My paintings capture the wildness and sensuality of the natural world. I visualize nature as monoliths of color, emotion and energy. I explore the edges of abstraction and realism, pushing the boundaries of watercolor while conveying the joyfulness of painting. Using vibrant color as my language, pigment and water explode across paper to form imagery. Working wet onto wet requires that simultaneously I am in and out of control with the medium; this is an essential component of my work.

25 years as a trauma therapist is evident in my work. Many people have been subjected to violence and neglect of all kinds and I am drawn to helping them on the path of healing from adversity. There is great beauty in the human spirit fighting through darkness, reaching towards freedom from pain. Flowers, tidepools, landscapes that emerge from my brush reflect the dramatic struggle to exist. I show the dignity of imperfection, the beauty present in the pulsing life force as it reaches for the sun. A celebration of the scars of survival.

Sea

Paintings of seascapes and tidepools are my emotional response to the rugged coast of Northern California. Seemingly fragile tidepools thrive in this beautiful yet harshly violent environment. Appearing as brilliant underwater flower gardens, I am drawn to the contrasts of the brutal sea meeting the shore.

Land

I am inspired by the forests of the Wisconsin, red rock canyons and hoodoos of Utah, and the moonscapes of South Dakota's badlands. Nature's drama and mystery speak to me in vivid color.

In Bloom

Common garden plants have personality, particularly sunflowers and poppies. Flowers and foliage exhibit individual emotional traits more akin to people than to plants. The life forms of a garden are a reflection of the human experience.

Lastly,

Having said all of the above, I'm moved to quote one of my favorite German Expressionist artists:

"I have an inexplicable yearning to lay hold of what I see and feel and then to find the most direct expression possible for such experience. I only know there are things which neither the intellect  nor words can grasp. Actually, if you want to know my honest opinion, I'm convinced you can't talk about art. At best, all you will have is a translation, a poetic paraphase, and as for that I'll leave that to the poets."

-Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, 1914. His work was considered "degenerate" by the Nazi Regime and was forbidden to paint in 1941.

BIO

Mary Kay Neumann's paintings have been featured in solo and group exhibitions in galleries and art centers throughout the United State. This includes the Rhonda Schaller Studio in New York City; the Mendocino Art Center in Mendocino, California; Woman Made Gallery in Chicago,IL, the Arts Center on Main in Garden City, Kansas; the Pyle Center of the University of Wisconsin in Madison. In 2008 she had a solo exhibition in Lt. Governor Barbara Lawton's Office at the Wisconsin State Capital. In 2009, she had a solo exhibition at Hudson Hospital's Healing Arts Program, in collaboration with the Phipps Center for the Arts in Hudson, Wisconsin, and exhibited in a group show at Wisconsin Arts Board, in Madison, Wisconsin. In 2011 she exhibited at the 25th Annual Artful Women Show at the UW Hospital and clinics. Her painting "Falling Slowly" won an honorable mention. Her paintings are held in numerous private collections throughout the US and Mexico.

Corprate Collections

• Meriter Hospital, Madison, WI
• Petkovsek & Moran, CPA, Madison, WI
• Red Sage Health, Madison, WI
• D&K Pattern, St. Charles, MI
• EastSide Shoe Repair, Madison, WI
• Dean Clinic, Janesville, WI

Public Collections

• The State of Wisconsin Collection: Dept. of Transportation, Waukesha, WI

Awards and Honors

• "Falling Slowly" (for Scout) watercolor painting awarded Honorable Mention in 2011 Artful Women Show, University Hospitals, Madison, WI
• Selected for Wisconsin Arts Board Percent for Art Direct Purchase Program for 2010
• "Double Fantasy" watercolor painting selected for purchase by State of Wisconsin DMV
• "Creatures of Love" watercolor painting selected for Her Mark 2009, a journal of art and poetry, published by Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
• "Naked Truth" watercolor painting selected for 2008 calendar Small Rays of Hope and Fragments of A Larger Idea, Blue Pearl Press in conjunction with the Rhonda Schaller Gallery, New York City

Press

Lt. Governor Barbara Lawton

Interview with Madison Magazine