Artist Statement

Margaret McCarthy is a lifelong art lover and creative. A native of Atlanta, Georgia, she began studying drawing with her grandmother at the age of 13, filling papers and sketchbooks with charcoal studies and graphite drawings, before beginning her first oil painting at 15 under the tutelage of Atlanta-based artist and teacher Chris DiDomizio. She continued taking art classes through high school, went on to earn a degree in Art from Hillsdale College (Hillsdale, MI), studying under artist-professor Sam Knecht. She even spent a semester abroad in Cortona, Italy studying painting and drawing from life, photography, and art history under the Tuscan sun. After moving to Chicago in 2008, she took several classes with Michael Van Zeyl at the Palette & Chisel Academy of Fine Arts, where she enjoyed painting portrait and figure studies from live models.

She now lives in Bristol, IN, with her husband and two young children, working from home as a graphic/web designer by day and an artist by night. She enjoys working primarily in oils, painting portraits, landscapes and still lifes. She is a former Board member of the Elkhart Art League, has participated in the Elkhart ArtWalk events, and enjoys every opportunity to create and appreciate art!