Rooftops - Marybeth Heikes

Size: 20x24  Original Collage in Silver Frame with Single Light Gray Mat

In this view, I used a photo taken of downtown Des Moines a few years ago from the top of a parking garage. The architecture and building forms interested me. The panoramic view from above was inspiring! Of course, I took artistic liberty with most of the building colors and used a strong value pattern to emphasize the shapes. The rough texture of the heavy body acrylic paint adds interest too.

I paint because it is a passion; it is what I do best and defines who I am. I express my ideas through the language of painting because it provides a sense of fulfillment. The challenge of painting allows me to communicate through watercolor and culminates in my personal visual statement.

My paintings reflect who I am, my life and the world around me. I let the ideas flow and I delight in the unknown direction I may be heading. I usually get addicted to one particular subject and follow through with a whole series of paintings depicting that particular idea. Earlier in my career, I learned that an artist can see her progress by painting in a series. Thus, I have done more than one hundred paintings of chairs. Another favorite subject is barns, of which I have painted more than sixty motifs.