Mary received her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. There she explored the crafts of jewelry, pottery and textiles, often combining the three in her pieces. Her professional career took her to the world of graphic art and creative management at some of the top corporations and agencies in America. This included being Creative Director at Minolta Camera Corporation and as a Senior Account Executive at Saatchi and Saatchi and at McCann Erickson in New York City. During that time Mary did not let go of creating original art work. Starting off with photo-realistic pen and ink drawings, Mary moved to a more abstract art that comes with the confidence of not needing to please others, but to create what she feels. Collecting for years, Mary has a palate of jewelry, ceramics and stone that she uses to create her pieces. At the very beginning of her career Mary worked as a Park Ranger with the National Park Service where she interpreted the park through her art and teaching. This experience is something Mary treasures, as she reaches now into that experience to create garden art and landscapes.