Mary Calkins

Rooms of the Heart

charcoal on paper

48” x 36”

2023

Not For Sale

After the loss of my father who I cared for during his last 12 years, and the sudden death of a very close friend soon after, I was filled with a sense of gridlock in my heart- a mental and emotional paralysis. I built walls around my heart to protect it. It felt like a chasm running through me- a huge fissure filled with raw emotion and sorrow. My life felt empty, ragged and spent.

Mary Calkins

Oak Woods

Inspired by: Joyce Tenneson, Fork Shaped Tree

monoprint on paper

28″ x 28″

2015

Not For Sale

I chose my monoprint, “Oak Woods”, for its commonality in terms of palette and subject to Joyce Tenneson’s piece, “Fork Shaped Tree.” My work is composed of four quadrants using a lithographic technique conducive to the monoprinting process to depict photographic images of trees against the sky. “Oak Woods” is a more graphic stylized interpretation of the subject, opposed to Tenneson’s softer more atmospheric treatment. Both works share an ethereal glowing light created through use of a warm golden palette which contrasts with darker subdued colors in the silhouetted trees. The atmosphere of both evokes feelings of peace and serenity.