mary streepy

Posted on 05. Mar, 2010 by Seth in culture

words > DUSTIN DECKARD

Mary Streepy, 23, says “I’ve been doing art for as long as I can remember.” “When I was in first grade I drew a picture of a monkey holding a banana. At parent teacher conferences I remember my teacher saying something about that drawing, and that’s when it clicked.” To Streepy, art isn’t just something that she creates in her down time because she’s good at it. It’s something that she feels she literally has to do. She is compelled to create.

Streepy went into the arts programs at WSU after high school, where she earned a BA of Fine Arts in drawing. Since her first art show in 2006, she has been refining her talents, but never settling down on just one style. She currently favors using oils and inks in her pieces.

“The ink thing was an accident. I spilled ink on a painting and tried to blow it off or something, and I just liked what it started to do. It’s spontaneous, but eventually you start to gain control over the process.”

She uses this blown ink technique on just about any medium she comes across, whether it’s canvas or a slab of wood. She listens to music as she creates, which helps her fall into a self-described meditative state.

“I’m just trying to be honest with what I value visually. It’s always interesting when somebody looks at it and likes a painting – I’m just doing it because I have to. I love to paint and I always will. So to find that connection with somebody is really awesome.”