Maria D’Angelo has been drawing since she was a child in Staten Island, NY.  She often says she feels as though she was born with a pencil in her hand and everyone that has known her since that young age agrees. Although she now resides in a charming East Coast town where open spaces and farms still exist, it is the American west, particularly the horses and Native American people, which she chooses to capture on paper.

 

Maria studied fine art in college but feels her talent is natural and has blossomed through the mentorship she receives from acclaimed artist Krystii Melaine. She has spent much time traveling in the US visiting countless museums, galleries and historic sites, and attending cultural events and equine competitions which inspire her artistic vision. Her works usually begin with an outline drawing, then evolve into compositions in which light against dark and beautifully rendered fine details are the primary focus. Maria says that it is the fine details that her clients most often remark about when they see her drawings. “The detail in my work is usually the first thing that draws a person to it. They are always amazed by it.”

 

While Maria has worked in pencil most of her life, she has recently begun exploring pastel and oil paint. “I have always loved color and I am thoroughly enjoying working with both pastels and especially oil paint.” She also continues to work with charcoal on gessobord. “I love working on gessobord because it enables me to add layers of varnish on my finished drawings so they can be treated like oil paintings. They can be hung without the need of glass or even a frame. Realism is my primary goal. I want my subjects to look as though they will come to life and canter or dance off the paper.”

 

Maria is a member of the American Women Artists, the NJ Equine Artists’ Association and is a signature member of the Institute of Equine Artists.

 

Awards:

2016 NJEAA Art of the Horse Exhibit – 3rd place
2016 NJ State Fair – People’s Choice & Committee Choice Awards
2016 Art-Competition.net “Drawing 2” International competition – 2nd place
2015 Red Bluff Art Show – 2nd place drawing
2014 NJEAA Art Of  The Horse show – 4th place
2014 Western Associates of the Artists of the American West show – 3rd place
2010 “WAOWing the Golden State” – Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Nation award
2009 Horses In Art cover competition – Honorable Mention
2009 Western States Horse Expo’s Equine Dream Art Show – 1st place drawing

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Shows/Exhibits:
  2019 AWA Steamboat Springs Museum Art Show, Steamboat Springs, CO
  2019 AQHA - America’s Horse in Art Show AQHA Museum, Amarillo, TX
  2019 Mountain Oyster Club Art Show, Tucson, AZ
  2018 C.M. Russell Museum Art Show, Great Falls, MT
  2017 Mountain Oyster Club Art Show, Tucson, AZ
  2016 Mountain Oyster Club Art Show, Tucson, AZ
  2016 NJEAA Art of the Horse Exhibition & Sale, Farmstead Arts Center, Basking Ridge, NJ
  2016 Rims To Ruins Art Show, Saks Gallery, Denver, CO (to benefit Mesa Verde National Park)
  2016 American Women Artists Juried Show, Bennington Center for the Arts, Bennington, VT
  2016 AAEA Spring Invitational, Spindletop Hall, Lexington, KY
  2015 Traveling the West Art Show, Southwest Gallery, Dallas, TX
  2015 Western Associates Annual Juried Show, Round Top, TX
  2015 Salon International Exhibition. Gallery At Round Top, Round Top, TX
  2014 Bosque Art Classic, Clifton, TX
  2014 WAOWed in San Diego, Women’s Museum of California, San Diego, CA
  2013 AAEA Spring Invitational, Marietta Cob Museum, Marietta, GA
  2012 WAOWing The Texas Hill Country, RS Hannah Gallery, Fredericksburg, TX
  2012 Bosque Arts Classic, Clifton, TX
  2012 Scottsdale Salon of Fine Art, Legacy Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ
  2012 AAEA Spring Open Juried exhibit, Georgetown, KY
  2011 Mountain Oyster Club Art Show, Tucson, AZ
  2011 Western States Horse Expo Equine Dream Art Show, Sacramento, CA
  2011 Western Spirit Art Show, Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY
  2011 In The Company Of Cowgirls Art Show, Pendleton, OR
  2010 Heart Of The West Art Show & Sale, Lander, WY
  2010 WAOWing The Golden State Art Exhibit, Wieghorst Museum, CA
  2010 AAEA “Salute To The World Equestrian Games” Lexington History Museum
  2010 Empire 100 Art Show Tucson, AZ
  2009 Western States Horse Expo Equine Dream Art Show

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Publications:

ModelzRock Magazine, Issue III, October 2016
Visual Language Magazine, May 2015
Horses In Art Magazine Spring 2011
Western Horseman Magazine May 2010

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Artist Statement

 

I’ve always felt I was born with a pencil in my hand and for as long as I can remember my subject has been horses. The horse and the American West, particularly the Native American peoples are the foundations of my portraits. I especially love the vaquero tradition of horsemanship and the regalia of the Plains Indians. To me, their gear and regalia are works of art in themselves and I feel they add great interest and texture to a drawing.

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My works start with an outline drawing then evolve into compositions in which light against dark and fine details are the primary focus. The pencil is my tool of choice because it gives me great control and versatility. I work exclusively with Nero pencils. They contain a small bit of oil in the lead which makes blending very different from regular graphite pencils. Bristol plate is my favorite paper. I love its smoothness which enables me to capture tiny details in each piece.

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To me, art is a synthesis of my emotions, a subject that inspires me and my materials and techniques. Realism is my primary goal. I want my subjects to look as though they will come to life and canter off the paper.