We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Marthann Masterson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Marthann, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

It is a wonderful story.
I asked a woman who is an artist if she would teach my husband and I to paint. She did give us a few lessons about watercolors. As we wrapped it up she told me I had talent should go back to school which I did. She became my first mentor. In my first drawing class we were asked to create 15 self portraits. I had everything ready, charcoal, erasers, and paper
Then I got a call with some dreadful news but I finished the self portrait. The painting shows a lot sad of feelings. It was chosen for the student show and a gallery owner saw it and asked me to create a painting for an upcoming show. He said to g deep, which I did. The feeling of being on the outside of everyone has haunted me for a lifetime so I grasp my feelings and
Painting about rejection by using chairs to reflex my feelings.

That painting was chosen to be in an international exhibition. There were over 4000 entries and 15 were chosen. The image was enlarged to be the size of a billboard and the show was outside.

The following year the Sarasota Ballet Company wrote a ballet abut my painting The big image was the back drop of the stage.

That is when Iknew I wanted to be a professional artist!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have been painting big abstracts that have an ethereal feeling. When a church with over 10,000 members commissioned me to paint a painting for the Welcome Center. and later commissifoned me for another, I was thrilled.

I am a professional artist. I work 5 days week in my studio. Last year was the best year commissions were backed up with a waiting list of a yea

I also paint drip paintings. That sounds rather whimsical, but these paintings take about 2 weeks to create. I drip paint over the width of the painting around 40 times.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most awarding aspects of my art is when people stand in front of one of my paintings they smile and look peaceful.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I have painted for 20 years always on stretched canvas. About a year ago I saw these beautiful paintings and the artist knocked on her painting to show it was PVC board! I tried my drip paintings on the PVC board and they were fantastic!
Easier., more beautiful and faster. I created a technic for painting my drip paintings by hit and miss! To make the lines go straight down I make a formula which gives the viscosity just the right speed.

Contact Info:

• Website: [email protected]
• Instagram: @marthannmasterson

Image Credits

Marthann Masterson
Amaya