Bio
Grace Maybury-McIntosh (B. 2000) grew up on the north shores of Cape Cod and within the western mountains of Maine. Amongst the dunes of Sandwich and the panorama of distant blue mountains in Farmington, Grace remembers a constant overwhelming reaction to the natural scapes that felt just out of her reach. In 2022, when Grace completed her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, she decided to take a plunge into the world of painting to finally pursue a language through art to express her love for the beautiful land that surrounded her. Starting a new chapter at the Maine College of Art and Design, Grace discovered that painting from observation was symbiotic to describing her overwhelming reaction to nature. Grace currently maintains a studio practice between Farmington, Portland, and Sandwich Massachusetts with her trusty paint-splattered Subaru. Grace lives with her fiancé, Tyler, three rambunctious orange cats, and one grumpy tabby cat.
Artist Statement
Light in the natural world changes so suddenly. Even through constant observation light is seldom caught, often chased. I revel in the feeling of urgency that instills within me when I know the immediate conditions of my environment are on the brink of change. When my heart begins to palpitate, I know I am about the experience something profound. Working from observation is either catastrophic or victorious. As a plein air painter, all of my sensory components are stimulated. The sounds of the tide coming in, the smell of rain on the pavement, the feel of dried leaves underneath my feet are my steady companions.
I am not a storyteller, I am an observer who chases light. The only message I attach to my paintings is the truth: I was there and it was utterly beautiful.