Art that speaks from the inside out
The Poppy Planter This acrylic painting showcases the creativity of MaryJo Beswick.
Explore my Original paintings & mixed media
Spirit Guide Dream 24"x 24" mixed media
Explore My Abstract Collages
Happy Pond collage 12" x 12"
Explore my works on Black paper
Girl Friends painting 20" x 20"
about
Art created by MaryJo Beswick, celebrates life and the power of possibilities.
"My artwork is internally driven and intuitively created from the inside out. It often has a sense of whimsy which is not my intention but a natural aspect of my personality and the result of a playful process. It’s like a game that's more about letting go than holding on, more about discovering than knowing. I'm basically playing with design elements like shape, line, and color to create visual contrast, connections, movement, and happy surprises."
Growing up on Long Island, New York, as the youngest of four children, I was the artistic one. I was observant and at an early age taught myself how to draw. I made things to play with like paper dolls, hand puppets, board games, treasure maps and picture books. As a teenager, I designed and cut out paper bulletin boards for my mother, who was a first-grade school teacher.
I met my husband in Ohio, where I graduated from college with a degree in secondary education. I was going to be a public school art and home economics teacher but life had other plans. I became the mother of two sons and my adventurous husband's job kept taking us to new places. In our first twenty years, we lived in Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, New York, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts before his job took us to live in the south of France.
France is where I discovered that I truly am an artist. After taking a plein air watercolor class, I started painting passionately and teaching myself by studying various 'how to' paint watercolors books. Five years later when we returned to live in the United States, we settled into Richmond, Virginia. This is where I had the opportunity to take several workshops from national teachers, including some whose books I had studied. I eventually became a signature member of the Virginia Watercolor Society. At some point, I took a monotype workshop and loved the experimental aspect of creating a similar but different image repeatedly. Then an acrylic workshop inspired me to add opaque aspects to my paintings, making them looser and more abstract. I was searching for a more authentic way to paint. I felt like I was painting from the outside in, but I truly wanted to paint from the inside out. I had no idea how to do that and no one was teaching that in a workshop. I decided to self-study my personal preferences and tendencies by experimenting with the elements and principles of design. Eventually, I discovered what I call the 'visual language of design,' which led me to find my authentic visual voice in mixed media.
Along the way, we raised two wonderful sons, and I became a full-time artist. I got involved in two co-op art galleries that sold my paintings and prints. I published two children’s picture books which is a whole other story. I taught mixed media workshops and gave inspirational programs to artist organizations. My life has been an evolutionary journey and I am eternally grateful for the impulse to create and be curious, to stretch myself and to learn new things, to practice self-inquiry, and to find spiritual meaning in art-making.
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Contact
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All works on this site are available for purchase, some with or without a frame. The sizes listed refer to the image size only. Contact me for art pricing and shipping. Guitar players, ask me about how to get a hand-painted custom design on your guitar!
Thanks for visiting my work that speaks from the inside out!
MaryJo Beswick
maryjo@maryjobeswick.com
Today | By Appointment |
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