Mary Oelschlaeger

Watercolor is often described as a 'difficult' medium yet I remain enchanted by its possibilities, even to this day. Although I am always intimidated by a blank sheet of paper, I thrive on watching what can happen with a brush, a bit of water and a tube of paint.

— Mary Oelschlaeger

 

Mary Oelschlaeger moved to Missoula, MT in 2015 after she retired from her position as a professor of Speech-Language Pathology at Northern Arizona University. She has spent a lifetime of involvement in arts and crafts and is currently is an active member in many art organizations around the U.S. including the New Mexico Watercolor Society and the Santa Rita Art League in Green Valley, Arizona.

 

Although Oelschlaeger paints many subjects, her goal is always the same -- to expressively represent an everyday experience in a way that provokes the viewer to pause and appreciate something never noted before. She is inspired to work hard and capture the way light shapes perceptions of her subjects, moving it from the mundane to the extraordinary.  Her work is realistic yet moves toward expressionistic with softening of edges and her use of space.