ABOUT

Maggie Neely has been painting since she was a child. Her interest in art dates back to the mid 1950's when her parents would take her to the local art museum in Omaha Nebraska. She loved the colors and energy she saw in the paintings. After years of creating with crayons, finger paint, paint by number and watercolor she received her first set of oil paints as a teenager. She would paint whenever she could, staying up past the required bedtime on Friday and Saturday nights to paint.

When a teen, she received an honorable mention for a painting of a sailing ship at the Havre de Grace Art Festival.

After high school she ran away from home, married and had a child, then 15 months later ran back home with a child to support. She chose a career in health care to support herself and her son. She continued to paint, entering occasional shows and studying at various art schools over the years.

As an award-winning artist, she received a best in show award at Towson Art Fest and awards at the Belair Art Festival and the Maryland State Fair.

She expanded her artistic skills taking various courses at Harford Community College, Maryland Institute College of Art and Towson State College. She painted, drew, made mosaics and jewelry, and illustrated a book on Woody Plant Identification as she plodded along in her health care career.

At age 70 she retired from health care and finally could live her dream as a full-time artist. She feels she has finally found her place and enjoys painting daily.

Her home and art studio are in Pigtown, in Baltimore Maryland