Margaret Phinney

I am a self taught artist. I began drawing at a young age. I stopped after my mother died when I was 6 years old and didn't begin again until I was in my 40s. One day, I was walking along a canal and saw a scene across the water which compelled me to draw it. I couldn't believe when I was done I had drawn exactly what I had seen. It gave me a great deal of pleasure. But, my true love of art is focused on the abstract form.

As an artist who focuses more on Abstract Expressionism, I am able to create more pieces which express how I am feeling when I am painting and drawing. I live with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). My art is an expression of my mental state at any given time. The colors I use give the paintings the feeling I want to portray at the time. And the shapes show how those feelings are being expressed. I have been focusing more on what it could feel like with different mental health disorders. It is important to me to have more people see mental health issues as more than just words.

Self taught artist

Mad in America's on line Exhibitions: "Creativity and COVID: Art-Making During the Pandemic"