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Mary Goodall

 

 

 

Please click on the thumbnail images to enlarge

Alberta Foothills

 Dusk

Acrylic 18x24

 

Three Sisters

 Change of Seasons

Acrylic 24 x 36

 

Johnston Canyon 

 The Lower Falls

Acrylic 16 x 20

Cochrane

 Fields of Autumn

Acrylic 18x24

 

 

 

Pincher Creek

Indian Hill

Acrylic 18x24

Poppies

 Surrender

Acrylic and gesso. 11x14

Fish Creek Park

 Solitude

Acrylic 18 x 24

Hibiscus

 Reflection

 Acrylic 12 x 9

River Boat

 End of Season

Watercolour 14 x 11

Purple Pansies

Inspiration

Acrylic 30x40

Yellow Calla Lilies

Forever Grateful

Acrylic 30x40

 

White Cape Daisy

Loyal Love

Acrylic 30x36

 

Yellow Dahlias

Queen of the Autumn Garden

Acrylic 30x36

 

Pear - Fruit Study 1

Water colour and gesso 8x10

Pear - Fruit Study 2

Acrylic and gesso 8x10

 

 

 

Artist Statement

 

My work is spiritual and centering, often felt with simplicity yet with detail, expressing in colour and composition. It embodies the harmony and mystery of the beautiful world around us, creating a peaceful, harmonious space and feel wherein one can experience silence, still-point, and oneness with all.

All my paintings emerge from the photos I have taken. At times the camera does not capture the true sense of what my eye is seeing at the time, so I will bring that aspect into my paintings by merging the vibrant colours of my pallet to capture the feel of the day when the picture was taken with my paint. As soon as the paint is applied to my canvas, the process flow tells me what to do next based on my subject matter. At some point in this process I become aware of a deeper meaning and I keep this in mind as I continue. So many times I will get lost in what I am building on the canvas, even the concept of time. When I take the break to step back and look at what is being captured on my canvas I am taken aback at what is evolving. At times I will look at my work and embrace my detail in the way I captured the subject matter being in utter awe that was my paint stroke.


I feel shapes and lines as life energy flowing through space, and forming recognizable subject matter. Subjects such as foliage, flowers, mountain peaks, and rolling fields to rocks come into being from this pure abstraction of paint to form realism. I also love trying new media such as watercolours, inks, colour pencil and even texturing pastes. I love the experimentation involved with all these media and combinations of media. Figuring what works and what doesn’t. My passions of subject matter range from landscape, floral, people and still life. All of which allows me to find the true artist of who I am, where my paint stroke or pencil line is my signature of M. E. Goodall. (Mary Elizabeth Goodall).

 

Biography

Mary Goodall was born in Olds, Alberta, in 1968. As a child she loved to draw and even when only 4 years old always stayed within the lines in her colouring books. She discovered painting at an early age primarily working in oils. She loved to paint flowers and portraits. She sold her first painting in Grade 9 of a blue jay which she painted in oil. Even at that young age she stepped out of the box of conventional painting and painted the bird on a thin sheet of lacquered pine her father cut for her in his workshop. She used a toothpick to paint the picture. Mary comes from a long line of family Goodall artists dating back to 1794. Her grandfather Edward (Ted) Goodall was her main inspiration. She remembers being at her grandparent’s home on Richmond Road, Victoria, British Columbia, during summer holidays as a child. Her grandfather’s studio was in their home which over looked their garden pathways, raspberry bushes and oak trees. She loved to watch her grandfather draw and paint. You will still see Ted’s water colour paintings in Banff, Jasper, Lake Louise, Vancouver and Victoria. If you look closely at her work you will see a slight resemblance of her grandfather’s hand.

She put away her paints when she went to college in Red Deer, Alberta. Her ambition was to become an accountant. It was not until the early 1990’s that she started getting back into her painting. She would spend her summer holidays in Salmon Arm, British Columbia where her parents reside. Mary worked with a talented local artist and instructor Josephine (Jo) Parrott, a close and dear friend of the family. Jo taught her colour theory, painting techniques such as glazing which the masters used, composition, and drawing, which all brought inspiration seeing landscape, still life and floral in a new light and perspective. As well, Mary would take adhoc art courses at Mount Royal University in Calgary focusing on areas of drawing and painting. Currently Mary has taken a sabbatical from the corporate accounting world and has been totally absorbed in her art. She is working with artist and instructor Nancy Lynn Hughes. Nancy is also another inspiration in Mary’s work.


Mary has worked with various mediums such as oil, acrylic, watercolour, pencil, and charcoal. She also loves to work with conté as well as pen and ink. She enjoys experimenting with mixed media. She says the creative world never ends. Currently she is painting in acrylic and her focus has been landscape and floral. She captures the sense of movement, depth, light and perspective in her paintings as well as the vibrant colours of our lovely Alberta foothills and the majestic Rocky Mountains. Looking at her work you feel the coolness of the water or the wind blowing in the fields. Her camera is always with her. She captures photos on her travels, local walks and hikes, even the local garden centres which would eventually be the subject matter of her next painting on canvas.

Mary keeps her married name Morrison, but her art work has the signature of M. E. Goodall (Mary Elizabeth Goodall). Mary currently resides in Calgary, Alberta with her son Ryan Morrison and their golden retriever Jasper.