BIOGRAPHY
Mary Erickson has been painting since she can remember. She grew up sketching the beaches of Long Island Sound in Connecticut and has always been able to find beauty in her surroundings, whether it be along a southern shore or in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. She sold her first painting to Gulf+Western Industries in Stamford, Connecticut at 13.

Raised in Connecticut, Mary Erickson studied at the University of Bridgeport and Sacred Heart University, and initially pursued a career in business. Her passion for painting, and a move to Florida in 1986, stirred the desire to pursue art as a career. Finally, she realized a long held dream, and in 1993, Mary began painting professionally.

Preferring to work on location, in the tradition of painters since the French Impressionists of the 1800's, Mary continues to seek new opportunities to capture moments in time and place on canvas.

Since 1998 Mary has divided her time between Marshville, N.C. and Venice, Fla. Plein air painting tours have taken her to Spain, Montana, California, Oregon, Arizona, the Florida Panhandle, the Outer Banks of North Carolina, the Smoky Mountains, and Hilton Head, S.C. She travels extensively, either with her husband, John Edmondson, or with other artists.

Mary's day begins before sunrise, and ends after the last sunset painting. A weeklong painting tour will end in exhaustion, and the unique accomplishment of creating anywhere from 10 to 20 paintings for each artist!

Whether solitary excursions (like hiking through the Smokies with her golden retriever, Petey) or group efforts with other professionals or students, Mary believes these painting trips are essential to an artist's career and growth. "Besides, they're fun!" she says. Future trips are planned to Argentina, Maine, Ireland and Scotland.

Mary has studied with contemporary masters Don Demers, Tim Theis, Ken Backhaus, Louise DeMore and John Seerey-Lester. She is a founding member of SPAA (Southern Plein Air Artists,) and a member of The Group of Eight, a Florida-based alliance that paints and shows together, intent on recording the scenery of a rapidly vanishing natural Florida. Memberships also include the Oil Painters of America, the American Impressionist Society, the American Society of Marine Painters.

Mary's work is collected throughout the United States and Europe. Her largest project to date is the creation of four murals for the Panama City Mall in Panama City, Fla. It was installed in August 2004.

REPRESENTATION
Mary is represented by Davis-Moye and Associates of Atlanta. Gallery representation for original paintings include Alla Prima Fine Art in Saint Petersburg, FL, Germanton Gallery in Germanton, NC, Premiers Gallery in Pawleys Island, SC, Sanybel's Finest, in Sanibel Island, FL and Sheldon Fine Art in Naples, FL. Limited edition prints and posters, published by Birds of a Feather Publishing, Inc. are available at over 200 galleries and frame shops in the United States, and at Birds of a Feather Gallery.

CAREER HONORS
Patron Award & Honorable Mention,  Isle of Eight Flags Juried  Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL May 2008
PaintAmerica, Mini Top 50 Competition, 2007-8 Traveling Exhibition, Dec '07
Top 40 Peoples Choice, Small Works Show, Greenwich Workshop Gallery, Fairfield, CT, Nov '07
Monthly Finalist, Raymart Art Competition, RaymarArt.com, Phoenix, AZ, Jul '07
Isle of Eight Flags award, Isle of Eight Flags Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL, May '07
First Place, Doug Helms Memorial Show, Union County Arts Council, Monroe, NC Dec '06
Honorable Mention, Atalaya Fine Art, Pawleys Island, SC Sept '06
Patron Purchase Award, Isle of Eight Flags Juried Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL May '06
Award of Excellence, Paint the Town Plein Air Invitational, Alla Prima Fine Art, St. Pete, FL  Apr '06
Patron Purchase Award, Isle of Eight Flags Juried Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL May '05
Honorable Mention, Annual Spring into Art Competition, Charlotte Art League, Charlotte, NC May '05
Award of Excellence, Paint the Town Plein Air Invitational, Alla Prima Fine Art Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL  Apr '05
Artists' Choice 2nd Place, Mountains to the Coast Plein Air Invitational, Germanton Gallery, NC Apr '05
Patron Purchase Award, Florida Wildlife Exposition, Sarasota, FL Jan '05
Merit Award, Annual Fall into Art Competition, Charlotte Art League, Charlotte, NC  Nov '04
Patron Purchase Award, Isle of Eight Flags Juried Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL  May '04
Award of Distinction, Annual Florida Competition, Center for the Arts, Bonita Springs, FL Mar '04
Purchase Award, Florida Wildlife Exposition, Lakeland, FL Jan '04
Third Place, Fine Arts Juried Festival, Englewood, FL Mar '03
Second Place, Isle of Eight Flags Juried  Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL  May '02
Third Place, Isle of Eight Flags Juried  Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL  May '01
Patron Award,  Isle of Eight Flags Juried  Festival, Fernandina Beach, FL May '01
Best in Show, Autumn in Topsail Juried Festival, Topsail Island, NC  Oct '00
Peoples' Choice Award, Wild Autumn Exposition, Sarasota, FL Oct '98
Selected artist for poster design, Art Fest, Venice, FL Nov '98, '97, '96, '95, '94
Finalist, The Artist's Magazine 1995 Art Competition, Wildlife category
Top 200, Arts for the Parks, Jackson Hole, Wyoming Oct '94

CAREER EXHIBITIONS
“Brush With Reality” 3 Person Show. Elder Gallery Charlotte, NC. Oct. 2008
Art Institute &Gallery 17th Annual National Juried Exhibition, Sep/Oct 2008, Salisbury, Md.
The 112th Annual Open Juried Exhibition presented by the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, The National Arts Club, New York, NY. Sep/Oct 2008
“The Naturalist's World” Group Show. Elder Gallery Charlotte, NC. Aug. 2008
Plein Air Invitational, Apalachicola to St. Joe, FL May 2008
Plein Air Invitational, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC Apr 2008
Small Works Show, Greenwich Workshop Gallery, Fairfield, CT Nov '07
Women in Art, Elder Gallery, Charlotte, NC Oct '07
Featured artist, Things with Wings, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC Oct '07
Four person exhibition, Visions of Nature, Sheldon Fine Art, Naples, FL July '07
ASMA, 14th Annual Maritime Exhibition, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR Jul '07
Invitational Plein Air, Painting the Forgotten Coast, Apalachicola to St. Joe, FL May '07
Oil Painters of America, Ntl Juried Exhibition, WhistlePik Gallery, Fredericksberg, TX May '07
Hilton Head National, Walter Greer Gallery, Hilton Head, SC  May '07
Two person Exhibition, A Florida State of Mind, Alla Prima Fine Art, St. Petersberg, FL  Mar '07
Solo Exhibition and Presentation, Batte Fine Arts Center, Wingate University, Wingate, NC Mar '07
Solo exhibition, Lois Morgan  Edwards Memorial Library , Marshville, NC  July '06
Invitational Show, Things with Wings, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC Sept '06, annually since 1997
Plein Air Invitational, Mountains to the Coast, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC Apr '06
Plein Air Invitational, Paint the Town, Alla Prima Fine Art, St. Pete, FL Apr '06
Solo exhibition, Lois Morgan  Edwards Memorial  Library , Marshville, NC  July '05
Solo Exhibition, Monroe Public Library, Monroe, NC May '05
Invitational Show, Things with Wings, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC May '05, annually since 1997
Plein Air Invitational, Mountains to the Coast, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC Apr '05
Plein Air Invitational, Paint the Town, Alla Prima Fine Art, St. Petersburg, FL Apr '05
National Juried Exhibition, American Impressionists Society, Nichols Taos Fine Art, Taos, NM Apr' 05
National Juried Exhibition, Palm Beach Community College Humanities Gallery, Lake Worth, FL Apr '05
Group Exhibition, Elements and Facades - The Group of Eight, Chamber of Commerce, Ocala, FL Feb '05
Invitational Exposition, Florida Wildlife and Plein Air Expo, Sarasota, FL  Jan '0520
Invitational Show, Southeast Invitational, Germanton Gallery, Germanton, NC  Dec '04 ,annually since 1995
Solo exhibition, Lois Morgan  Edwards Memorial  Library, Marshville, NC  July '04, Dec '0420
Group exhibition, Images of the Loop - The Group of Eight, Art League of Daytona Beach, FL  May '04
National Juried Art Exhibition, Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, Hilton Head, SC  May '04
Juried Art Market at Honey Horn, Coastal Discovery Museum,   Hilton Head, SC Apr '04, '03, '02
Juried exhibition, Artescape Naples, Gallery Victoria, Naples, FL  Mar '04
Invitational Exposition, Florida Wildlife and Plein Air Expo, Lakeland, FL  Jan '04  (annually since '95)
Invitational Miniature Show, Geoffrey Smith Galleries, Stuart, FL Dec '03
Invitational Miniature Show, Richard James Gallery, Charleston, SC  Dec '03
Solo exhibition, Marshville Public Library, Marshville, NC Jul '03, '02
Four person exhibition,  SPAA - Southern Plein Air Artists, Castle Can Rates, Santa Suzanna, Spain Aug '02
Solo exhibition, Mangroves Gallery, Marco Island, FL  Mar '97, Apr '96
Solo exhibition, Collectors' Gallery, Venice, FL  Nov '96, Nov '95, Nov '94
Two person show, Mary Erickson and Karen Hitt, Village Gallery, Venice, FL Nov '96
Solo exhibition,  Village Gallery, Sebring, FLOct '96
Invitational Show, Originals in Miniature,  Stevenson's Gallery,  Corvallis, OR  Jul '95
Invitational, Wonderful World of Warblers, One Touch of Nature Gallery, Chicago, IL May '95
Solo exhibition,  Venice Little Theatre, Venice FL Dec '04
Juried Competition, Florida Outdoors!  Panama City, FL Nov '94
National Audubon Convention, Fort Myers, FL Nov '94

ARTIST'S STATEMENT
" The love of the outdoors has always been a part of my life. I remember as a child fishing with my mom on opening day in the spring in Connecticut, the river gliding by and the sounds of red-winged blackbirds. As I get older, I appreciate more than ever the beauty that surrounds us.

I have painted many vistas, old buildings and boat shacks that are no longer there. The passing of time, the progress of developers, the image-creators of towns, have taken old familiar scenes and traded them for new. Once wild, open spaces are now housing developements, and expansive marsh areas are now golf courses. I believe there will come a day when the only places we will be allowed a glimpse of true nature will be in the parks, preserves and conservancies that we set aside today. I record what I see, and am passionate about the scenes I can immortalize on canvas. That is my work's importance."

Every Mary Erickson print edition includes a special edition of 100 prints used exclusively to raise funds for conservation, preservation and educational organizations throughout the USA.