Mary Beatty-Brooks

From the Face Paint Stand, Original Painting

2024

Artist Comments
"Just off Brady Street, in Milwaukee’s East Side, there used to be a place with class and style," says artist Leroy Burt. The store was a treasure trove of vintage goodies that were as fun to dig through as to wear. The shop was full of clothing, shoes, jewelry, and bags, some dating back to the golden days of the 40s, 50s, and 60s. The ceiling was pink and covered with toys, trinkets, signs, and other captivating eye candy.

About the Artist
Artist Leroy Burt paints playful, offbeat landscapes and portraits based on his experiences living in Milwaukee, New York, Costa Rica, and currently Rochester, Minnesota. "I think of my paintings as short stories," he says. As a young child, Leroy faced a number of obstacles. His parents divorced when he was four years old and he was raised by his grandparents in a three-room shack without running water or electricity. Leroy worked hard to pull himself out of poverty. He studied graphic design and painting, which led to a 30-year career in graphic design - five years at WMVS, the PBS television station in Milwaukee, fifteen years at city hall in Milwaukee, and ten years at WNET, the PBS station in New York. In 2015, Leroy retired to focus his energy on painting. Today, he works from a tiny studio filled with half-finished paintings stacked against every wall. "There are photos and sketches for future paintings taped everywhere," says Leroy. "My windows are filled with orchids. There are books, films and music CDs in every corner. And the room is dominated by a black and silver Andy Warhol silkscreen...

Artist Comments
"This grouping of eucalyptus trees and bushes seemed like a tightly-knit family to me," says artist Patricia Prendergast. "I worked to portray that feeling by using an analogous color palette so that the sky, trees, bushes and grass all knit together."

About the Artist
Pastel artist Patricia Prendergast creates impressionist artworks that depict the rivers and landscapes near her home in Sacramento, California. With each nature vignette, she captures the sense of larger natural rhythms through quick mark-making, mauve undertones, and a tranquil and serene haziness. Her work recalls the paintings from the Hudson River School such as Thomas Cole and Asher Brown Durand. Before working on her pastels at home in her studio, she spends hours studying nature on walks along the river near her home. Since becoming an artist, she says “everything is more vivid - the beauty of light and shadow in the trees, the subtlety of the color of clouds, the sparkle and reflections in water.” Her work as been exhibited in solo shows around California. She is represented by UGallery.

Words that describe this painting: California, landscape, eucalyptus, trees, bushes, tonalism...

Artist Comments
In this soft Northern California landscape, artist Patricia Pendergast explores the expressive colors she experienced while on location. "I pushed the local c...

Artist Comments
Artist Benjamin Thomas demonstrates an impressionist scene of a couple having an intimate conversation on a lake-side bench. "I was on a bike ride around the town of Niagara and came back to them still being there," says Robert. The figures bathe in the light of the sunset...