Bio

Mary Lou is a Rhode Island native whose career as a professional portrait artist began in 1969 while attending URI on a music scholarship. In 1974 she became co-owner of Scituate Potters. She worked there for over a decade as a designer, potter and teacher for this award winning company producing both commercial and gallery pieces.

In 1987 Mary Lou created a sculptural jewelry line that incorporated pottery, fabric, and semi-precious stones into broaches, pins and hats vibrant with impressionistic colors and textures. Over the years these pieces have been sold in Rhode Island, San Francisco and Manhattan galleries and are produced on a commission basis.

Beginning in the early 1990’s, Mary Lou began painting landscape scenes of Narragansett Bay and surrounding beaches, which she continues to this day. Over the years she has expanded her landscapes to include lakes and ponds in the Adirondacks, beaches in Hawaii, the northern California coast and the deserts of Arizona. She is also well known for ‘The Ladies’ series which was inspired by early 20th century photos of her grandmother and friends. These works have been displayed and sold in numerous juried shows, winning critical acclaim and praise.

In 1990 Mary Lou revived her lifelong love of portraiture. This quickly grew into a successful professional portrait business. Her portraits and landscapes now hang in homes and boardrooms around the country.