Portfolio

Interested in purchasing a work? Contact me!

For my students, its important to know that all artists maintain portfolios.
Some artists work in different styles, media, or genre and keep separate portfolios for each.
Since this page is part of my teaching portfolio, I will share my "personal" work here. That is, the work that I do for myself that is non-commissioned based and is not working from a narrative I was assigned by a publisher or client.

Below are my most recent works.
Additional works from my professional illustration portfolio can be found here:
http://www.perrycarsley.com/maryellenstudio/

As this is most likely the first time for you to keep a portfolio, I recommend that you keep your work all together and in chronological order so you can grasp a sense of your development as a artist in media, technique, subject matter, and style.
The great thing is, now that you have started this all you have to do is keep documenting your work as you go and Viola! Your have made your first portfolio! Please look under the Handy Resources page for tips on documenting your work.

Blue Jays, 2022, watercolor painting and accordion book
poem 1177 by Emily Dickinson, entry for Delaware Chapter Guild of Book Workers Annual Exhibit

Amaryllis with Color, 2022
watercolor and graphite

Daffodils for Marley, 2022, graphite

Iguana, 2022, reduction woodblock print

purchased for the Anne Arundel Community College Collection

Pumpkins, 2021, watercolor.

Anthurium, 2021, watercolor

Most Recent Publication: Hatchlings, A Coloring Book Anthology of Birds

Purchase Hatchings Here

Handmade Long Stitch Book

Interior signatures are Gutenberg Smooth paper. Cover original watercolor with black tea stain on 300 lbs. Arches Paper with Belgian Linen thread.

Multi-colored Woodblock Prints

Etchings

Postcard Gallery

Please watch this space for my latest editions to my on going "Post It" project, creating and sending original postcards

Small Watercolors

Drawings

Wood Block Prints

Handprinted Woodblock Bookmarks

Portobello Mushroom

Carnivorous Plants

Maryland native, Purple Pitcher Plant.
Medium: Graphite and watercolor

Interest image for upcoming workshop on drawing carnivorous plants August 2018 at the US Botanic Gardens in Washington DC.

These plants can be found in wet, boggy environments all along the Eastern US seaboard. They lure their prey to capture into the pitcher at the base of the flower stalk. Prey fall into the pitcher and drown in the rainwater that collects in the base of each leaf.Their prey includes flies, moths, spiders and mosquitos. Certain bacteria present in the pitcher water breaks down and mineralizes the prey making the nutrients available to the plant.

Native American peoples regarded this plant as medicinal and made a root infusion for treating Small Pox.

Moths and Their Host Plants Triptych

This work began three years ago as I sat on my front porch watching my cat watch hummingbird moths drinking from our garden Four O'Clocks in the evening. Inspired by this secret pollinators, I embarked on creating a series of three works: Luna Moths and Moon Flowers, Hummingbird Moths and Four O'Clocks, and Catalpa Moths and Catalpa Trees. I used the "triptych" arrangement that I learned about through an exhibit at the National Gallery on Dutch Master altarpieces. Each wall hanging is painted silk and measures 4 fee by 6 feet.

Hand Studies

Blackbirds

Tree Sketches

Below is a gallery of my secondary students' work. The assignment was to draw a tree that was "expressive" of a certain emotion or motion, e.g. dancing, blowing in the wind, grounding toward the earth, contrasting elements, reaching for the sky. Each tree image was inspired by the beautiful bonsai in the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum located in the United States Arboretum in Washington DC. Special thanks to the curator and staff their who make this project possible every year for my students!

To the left is an easy exercise to hone your ability drawing in ink for capturing the form and texture of trees.