About

About


Mary Meyer examines our relationship with the environment through the lens of ecology and the interconnectedness of life forms. Her work utilizes mixed-media wall sculptures and installations to explore myriad similarities threaded throughout nature, especially between human anatomy and botanicals. Meyer earned a BFA in sculpture from Arizona State University, and an MFA in sculpture from the University of Arizona, where she received the MFA Fellowship. The artist has participated in exhibitions at the Phoenix Art Museum; Tucson Museum of Art; Denver Capital Building; Agripas 12 Gallery, Jerusalem, Israel; and Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ; among others. In 2019, Meyer had her eighth solo exhibition, Biophilia, at Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum. She is currently working on The Leaf Connection: a community art project and installation that will be on exhibit at the Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden in 2024. Recent awards include an Arizona Commission on the Arts Grant; Contemporary Forum Artist Grant (Phoenix Art Museum); Pat Mutterer Memorial Award, 2020 Arizona Biennial (Tucson Museum of Art); and Night Bloom Grant (MOCA Tucson and Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts). In 2021, Meyer was an artist in residence at Tempe Center for the Arts, and was one of 12 Arizona artists selected for the Phoenix Institute of Contemporary Art (phICA) Trajectory Print Portfolio Project. Public collections include Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport; Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum and Mesa Arts Center; City of Tempe, AZ; Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA), Tucson Museum of Art; and Royal Caribbean International. Mary Meyer is an alumni member of Phoenix artist collectives Eye Lounge Contemporary Artspace and MARS Artspace, and has served as an adjunct professor teaching sculpture at Arizona State University, Scottsdale Community College, and Chandler-Gilbert Community College. The artist currently lives and works in Gold Canyon, AZ, and has a studio at Cattletrack Arts Compound in Scottsdale.

Artist Statement

My work focuses on the intimate connection between the landscape of the body and the landscape of the natural world. Examining nature's constructs and patterns is at the root of my practice. As I observe the myriad forms that she holds, I look for elements of the figure repeated within them. I use clay, wood, found objects— and meditative processes such as carving and hand-building— to explore the common shapes and symmetries of human and botanical anatomy. Recent work includes large wall installations of ceramic seeds and leaves— systems of carved forms that echo the calm energy used to create them. I see these figures as living organisms that embody the stillness and physicality that is slowly disappearing from daily life.