Mary Barnes-Gingrich was born in Chicago, and is currently a resident of Wilmette, Illinois. Art and music have played important roles in her life since childhood. She received a degree in Music Performance from Northwestern University. While at Northwestern, she also pursued her interest in art with a focus in art history. Since that time, she has continuously studied both art forms - showing her artwork in local and national juried shows and perfoming with outstanding musical organizations, including the Chicago Symphony and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. In 1997 Mary set her professional musical career aside to focus on visual art. She has studied painting technique with Alain Gavin, Ginny Sykes, and Ann Ponce and printing technique with Holly Greenberg, Eric Robbins and Elaine Sager and spent three years copying master paintings in the galleries of the Art Institute. In 1998, she was chosen as one of the artists featured in The Chicago Art Scene, a book published by Ivy Sundell showcasing a diverse group of Chicago artists. In 2001, her artwork was included in a book called Celebrating the Wild Places of Door County. She frequently chooses subjects inspired by the the Door County landscape in her paintings and prints. Her artwork hangs throughout the United States as well as Italy and Japan and in the collections of Amoco and Fel-pro. Her work is also displayed at Firemouth Pottery and Gallery in Boulder Junction, Wisconsin.
Mary enjoys both painting and printing. She is currently working on a series of "tree portraits" and a series of waterfall paintings. The subjects of her prints are inspired by landscape and music. She also paints a number of portraits each year, including an ongoing personal project depicting women musicians.
