Mary Calkins

In 1989 Mary Calkins returned to the Massachusetts College of Art (MCA) in Boston, Massachusetts, after a 17-year absence. She was 36 years old, and her life had led her in many different directions. Her return to school marked the beginning of a serious commitment to art; in 1994 she earned a B.F.A. in painting. During her years at MCA, Calkins became very interested in printmaking and especially monoprinting. She also began to nurture an appreciation for Native American culture, which led her to study for a year at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1992. Since completing her formal training, Calkins has pursued painting and printmaking full time.

She combines techniques and approaches for unusual results, and particularly enjoys incorporating collage into her work. The resulting images, though nonrepresentational, are rich with environmental, historical, and personal influences. Calkins' work has been exhibited in galleries in Arizona, New Mexico, and Maine, among other places.