About Mary Ahern
For over 35 years, I’ve cultivated both a garden and an art practice—two passions that have become inseparable. Every painting begins in the soil, where I tend peonies, camellias, roses, and hundreds of other blooms. What I discover there—the delicate balance of ecosystems, the cycles of growth and decay, the quiet philosophy hidden in petals—finds its way onto canvas.
My studio overlooks the garden I designed and have nurtured for more than three decades. It’s a living laboratory where I observe, photograph, and fall in love with the details most people walk past. These intimate encounters with nature fuel everything I create.
I work primarily in oils, building layers of transparent glazes that interweave floral realism with abstract cosmic imagery. The process is slow, meditative, and ever-evolving—much like the garden itself. Through my Art Blog and Garden Blog, I share glimpses of this practice and the daily rhythms of studio life.
My work has been featured in galleries across the region and in publications including Newsday and Bold Journey. I invite you to explore the artwork, read about my process, or simply wander through the visual stories I’ve gathered over a lifetime of tending both garden and canvas.
…mary
[Learn more about my artistic philosophy in my Artist’s Statement below.
Click here to read my full Biography or
Click here for my Artist Resume.
Artist Statement
My art, deeply rooted in symbolism, reflects the interconnectedness and balance within both the microcosm of my garden and the macrocosm of the cosmos. Embedded in these artworks are the stirrings of conversation regarding these issues
Drawing inspiration from the vibrant community of life in my garden, my flowers invite universal questions of existence and purpose in their quest for survival, eventual senescence, and rebirth.
The identifiable floral Images I create are glazed and intertwined with my abstract underpaintings inspired by the recent awe-inspiring visuals of the universe. By recognizing the delicate balance required for both terrestrial and celestial ecosystems to thrive, I am inspired to provide a visual context for understanding the essential balance necessary for life’s harmony.
Employing imagery that balances both abstraction and realism, I am mirroring the delicate equilibrium needed for universal survival. My extensive use of transparent glazing between the garden and the galaxy exemplifies the need for open discourse, which I believe is necessary to ensure the health and survival of all species.
My artistic process involves employing unique techniques that I have continued to refine over the course of 50 years. Through the years of experimentation and refinement, I have developed a distinctive approach to painting that reflects my artistic vision and also my philosophy.