Featured Artist Mary Ryder: A Love for the Bizarre and Marzipan!

We've decided to feature an artist's work each month in a little mini-exhibit in the gallery. Our first featured artist, for January, is artist Mary Ryder. Mary works in a range of mediums, including acrylic and carbon. Says Mary of her work: "I enjoy exploring a wide range of styles from traditional figure drawing in graphite and charcoal, to painting in oil, acrylic, and mixed media in subjects that span "the usual" to the fun and fanciful."

"Walking Winston"  Acrylic

 Mary was born in Norwich, Vermont.  Shortly thereafter she became active in art since it was something she could do until the earth thawed.  “There was hardly a time when she wasn’t drawing,” says her Mom, “she made so much stuff, I had to throw it out when she wasn’t looking.” During college, Mary worked as an archeological draftsman in Colonial Williamsburg since it combined her love of using ink and digging in the dirt. After college, she worked at a graphic design studio in San Francisco which afforded her the opportunity to design, art direct, press proof, eat good food and pay for her apartment.

"Outstanding in Their Field" Acrylic

She moved to Honolulu and worked in the art department of a bank, did freelance designs and logos for a surfboard builder, a manufacturer of beach towels and a bikini company. Really! Back in Virginia, Mary worked at an ad agency in Old Town doing design and production work, which kept her from thinking about how much she would rather be in CA or HI. She freelanced briefly for the Dept. of Ed. After her son was born, her artistic energies took a backseat and were diverted into homemade Play-Doh and bizarre and inappropriate marzipan objects. After living overseas for many years soaking up art everywhere, Mary returned to VA and plunged back into art and nearly drowned in book binding, painting, printmaking, life drawing, graphite, pastel, charcoal, anything that would leave a mark…she retains a love for the bizarre and marzipan!  

Although she works in a wide range of mediums rife with color, she says "...but I always return to black and white and to drawing. Within my artwork I try to use unusual materials and unusual techniques."

"An Innocent Man" Carbon

Mary's work is extremely popular with Gallery patrons, especially her compelling black and white works. Her entry into the Arlington Artists Alliance recent juried show "Left Out," titled "An Innocent Man," won her a second place award. The piece was at once disturbing and compelling, and Mary allowed as how this piece, not oritinally intended to show a scary figure, simply came out that way - causing her to think about how apperances can be deceiving, This man could be totally innocent but looks sinister.

"Oh No!  The Dolls" Acrylic

Mary also did a series of "dolly" works, depicting dolls. She admits they are a little creepy but also fun. She titles her pieces whimsically such as "Oh No! The Dolls" with a nod toward the fact that many people are creeped out by dolls!

Mary has work at Gallery Underground every month, which can be seen on our Flickr Feed: https://www.flickr.com/photos/126919361@N04/

- Sandi Parker, Gallery Underground Co-Director