I’m Maggie, and I’m a painter based in Atlanta, Ga. I studied at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and finished my painting degree at UGA’s Lamar Dodd Art School. I started painting when I was about 4 years old. My mom said she knew I had talent when I brought her a little stick figure drawing and instead of delicately asking me, “What is this supposed to be, sweetie?” She knew 100% that it was a frog. I was the stick-figure frog drawing master at only 4 years old, a title 4 year old Picasso probably never received. In your face, Picasso.

I painted obsessively throughout my childhood, initially to avoid socially awkward scenarios. I found that I could forgo large intimidating crowds and meet people one-on-one, if I simply asked to draw them. It made me intensely study the human figure, and is still my favorite practice. Drawing from life was the best gift I could have given myself, because it cured my shyness, created a catalog of human poses in my head, and it made me work faster. 

I was lucky enough to have the artist Carolyn Young Hisel as a family friend, and from age 9-15 she took me under her wing and showed me what life as a working artist could be like. I spent my summers drawing and painting in a professional art studio, while other kids went to camp. She made me believe I could have a career as a painter. All my romantic notions about living as an artist come from relaxing in her english garden and trying to draw the darting koi fish in the pond.

After college by way of Chicago and Atlanta, I’ve finally come full circle- it mostly means I’m sitting in my pajamas and drawing elaborate interpretations of frogs, but I have also gotten to work for some pretty amazing clients. I’ve painted celebrities, fashion shows, weddings, magazine events and private gatherings. I’ve even painted on Ellen! I’m here to paint, I’m your painter on call.

What’s next? That’s really up to you. What is your dream painting, the ideal canvas of personal art you imagine hanging in your space? What is the image you want to wake up to every morning, so you can sip your coffee, see it, and invigorate your day? What is your visual mantra of the love and hope in your life? Let’s make it happen!