Maggie Stillwell    Several years ago, Maggie Stillwell was horseback riding outside of Phoenix with a friend who encouraged her to attend classes at the Milan Art Institute in Queen Creek, Arizona. After introductory classes, Maggie was soon hooked on the school’s philosophy and left her home and family in Carson to complete an intense year-long program where she was forced to paint out of her comfort zone…beginning with cityscapes. After the production of a multitude of paintings and drawings in different media, styles, and subjects, she discovered her favorite subjects are still animals and Western themes. She prefers to paint abstractly as it allows the freedom to express the vitality and movement of the subject without being “fenced in” with restrictive realism. The first three large canvases in her recent mountain wildlife series are perfect for playing with the palette knife she uses to get the texture in the animal’s fur. She also uses a reverse process where instead of working back to front as she usually does, she works the image first, then the background. Maggie says, “This allows for the subject to be peeking out of the background, as wildlife tends to do.”   

Maggie Stillwell resides in Carson City but spends time at her homes outside of Phoenix and at Lake Tahoe. Her art reveals the flavors from each of these residences as well as her travels. While Maggie had always loved to make art, she had gone into education for a profession. Now, as a retired teacher from the Carson City School District and the University of Phoenix, she has the time for art. She joined the NAA 5 years ago to build a local network of artistic friendships.