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Greely artist offers otherworldly look at life
Posted Dec 31, 2009 By Charelle Evelyn
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ThisEMC Entertainment Mary Loos sees the world through a slightly different lens.
Though the Greely-based artist is inspired by her natural surroundings, her paintings rarely reflect more than a fleeting glimpse of reality.
"It's our world, but it's not," said Mrs. Loos.
After her first local showing at the Country Creations Craft Show in Osgoode Dec. 4 to 13, area residents are getting the opportunity to see the world the way she does.
For the past 10 years, Mrs. Loos' work has primarily been showcased at Artisans, an artist collective in the Byward Market.
Mrs. Loos said that she has always been artistic. She began drawing as a child, "going through paper like crazy," but switched to watercolours 15 years ago.
"I wanted to make pen and ink more vibrant," she said.
She moved on from watercolour paints to acrylics six years ago and when she began adding a resin topcoat to her work to give it a shine, it created a marked difference.
"I noticed a real response to it in the Market," she said. "Whether you like it or not, it's hard to ignore."
She left Artisans in September to be able to focus on her six year-old son, Elijah, and paint on her own terms.
While she enjoyed her experience selling downtown, Mrs. Loos said she often felt the pressure to produce solely to keep up with sales. "Now I feel I can take more time and figure out where I'm going."
When she heard about the Osgoode show, the artist said she saw an opportunity to display her work locally for the first time, since moving to Greely four years ago.
"People aren't aware that I'm here," Mrs. Loos said, but now that she is making herself known her eye-catching paintings are difficult to disregard.
Bright colours such as reds and oranges and vibrant blues with highlights of gold and silver characterize a lot of Mrs. Loos' paintings.
She said she paints when she is in a good mood so that her work captures and reflects joy.
"I'm collecting all these good things from the world and trying to let it out on canvas."
Saddled with the familial trait of shyness, Mrs. Loos said that although she prefers to let her work speak for itself, she understands the necessity of being present and available to the public.
Mrs. Loos' first big hurdle came with her first art show in 1999. For her debut showing, she chose the One of a Kind Show and Sale in Toronto, one of the largest art trade shows in the country at the time.
"It was nerve-wracking," she said, recalling how her nerves were compounded by the fact that not only did she also come down with the flu during the show's run, but she was placed beside an artist who had a large Toronto following.
This crash course in doing an art show also solidified that it was possible to paint as a profession.
"I'm very lucky to do to what I do and I hope that comes across in my work," she said.
After taking a break from the frenzy of the Osgoode show, Mrs. Loos will begin working on a collection to show at Manotick's French Café in May.
To see examples of Mary Loos' work, visit her web site at www.maryloosoriginals.com.
Hello and Welcome. This About Me page is to give you an idea of what I'm all about so here goes. I was very fortunate to grow up in a very small town surrounded by water and islands. Part of each year my family lived on a island and I'm sure it was there I developed a deep appreciation of nature and feeling like I was part of it. As you might imagine spending so much time isolated on an island your imagination becomes very broad. I spent much of my time in my own creative world drawing and daydreaming. I feel a real connection to that kid when I paint now. I'm very content when I'm creating something new and I get a deep sense of satisfaction by the whole process. That's why I feel my art is has a positive nature to it. Even the lonely little houses under the moon feel hopeful somehow. Your not alone when you have the moon over head.
Professionally I've also been fortunate. I've had successful art shows in Toronto and Ottawa and have shown my work in art galleries in Ottawa, Wellington and Port Carling. I was commissioned by Rideau Hall Government House for a series of original portraits of Rideau Hall. The series went into print. For ten years I was a member of an artist collective called Artisans located in the historic ByWard Market. Today I'm enjoying the freedom to create when and what my spirit is drawn to. Our world seen through my own looking glass. Earthy and other worldly.
I'm working on creating a body of work for an art show to happen May 2010 at the French Cafe in Manotick.
