Mary Heilmann
Earlier this week I had the opportunity to check out Art21 which is a website hosted by the public broadcasting system that is geared to showcase artists of the 21st century. One particular artist that caught my eye was Mary Heilmann. On the homepage of Art21 there is photos of pieces of each artist’s artwork and her particular work caught my eye because of all the shapes and patterns that she uses in her artwork, here is an example.
All of Mary Heilmann’s work involves abstract paintings, ceramics, and designing furniture, and what makes her work really remarkable is that there is a back-story for every piece of artwork. In her biography Art21 website they state that her artwork is “Imbued with recollections, stories spun from her imagination, and references to music, aesthetic influences, and dreams, her paintings are like meditations or icons.” She also finds inspiration for her colors from TV cartoons, for example The Simpsons. In recent years Heilmann has received numerous medals and grants including the Anonymous Was A Women Foundation Award in 2006. This award is worth $25,000 and is given to women over the age of 30, and there is no application process, a committee must select you. Her work is also showcased in many collections through out the world including the Museum of Modern Art in New York. You you can view some of her artwork that I have selected that is very intriguing to me.
