Mary Reilly

MARY REILLY started oil painting in New Jersey where she was born and raised, and she developed her career further after moving to Virginia in 1986 with her husband and two daughters. In 1991 Mary moved her studio out of her home and opened Creative Brush Studio, a combined studio and gallery in Historic Manassas where she continues today  to paint and display her work along with other artists.

When Mary first started painting, art schools and college art programs had taken a direction away from realism. So for her education she to chose initially study in artist studios and eventually each year handpicking one or two week long art workshops to attend. This has enabled her to hone her artistic skills and become proficient in what she loved, painting realistically rendered subjects in oil.

As she grew artistically, Mary was featured in the magazines: Northern Virginia, The Piedmont Virginian, Prince William Living and the Piedmont Business Journal where she was highlighted as one of the "25 Women to Watch" in the feature article on Women in Business.

Mary has also been commissioned to paint many public and private portraits with some in such prestigious locations as the United States Court of Veteran Appeals in Washington D.C., the University of Virginia in Charlottesville VA, and Washington Hospital Center, Washington D.C. Her work is also displayed in many other public locations as well as gracing the walls of people’s homes with oil portraits of their children, grandchildren, pets and other subjects.

Some of Mary’s paintings are showcased on her website which can be reached by going to www.CreativeBrush.com.

* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 15^th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.