Photographer's Notes

The work of Mary Kunaniec Skeen is an exploration of the effects of memory, of deeply embedded emotion and of attempts to heal and refit the lost fragments of self.

 

Artist Statement

My earliest recollections include wanting only to be an artist. I was influenced not by any early formal training or exposure to traditional art venues. My earliest influences were photographs and illustrations in newspapers, magazines, movies and the image rich catholic church in which I was raised. I spent most of my free time drawing and painting with whatever materials I could find.

I earned a BFA degree in painting and printmaking from the Maryland Institute College of Art. However, in my senior year I was introduced to photography and discovered the perfect medium with which to make images. I left drawing and painting almost immediately. My photographic work however, has always been informed by my work and study of painting, printmaking and drawing.

I became interested in the history of the medium of photography early on when I first read Beaumont Newhall’s History of Photography. I worked for several years as a cataloger and appraiser of photographica for an auction gallery, and at that time began collecting daguerreotypes, ambrotypes ,tintypes, cartes de visite and cabinet cards.

I earned an MFA in photography at Towson University, and wrote and introduced a history of photography course to the University during my graduate work there. I have taught the history of photography, as well as many studio courses, both analog and digital since that time.

 

Mary Kunaniec Skeen is a fine arts photographer and professor of photography at Loyola University Maryland. Her work has been widely exhibited and she has received numerous awards and grants.

Education

MFA Photography – Towson University, Towson, MD

BFA Painting/Printmaking – Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD

Employment / Teaching

Loyola University Maryland – Baltimore, MD
Assistant Professor of Photography

Goucher College – Baltimore, MD
Adjunct Professor of Photography, History of Photography

Towson University – Towson, MD
Adjunct Professor of Photography, History of Photography

Harford Community College – Bel Air, MD
Adjunct Professor of Photography, History of Photography

Grants & Awards

2009 – Loyola University Faculty Summer Research Grant

2007 – Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artists Award

2005 – Loyola University Faculty Summer Research Grant

2001 – Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artists Award

1999 – Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artists Award

 

Exhibition Awards

2007 – Third Place Prize | The Muse Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2005 – First prize | Fredericksburg Center for the Creative Arts, Fredericksburg, VA | Backroads & Boulevards Exhibit

2000 – Juror’s Award | Howard County Center for the Arts, Columbia, MD

2000 – Third Place Award | Fredericksburg Center for the Creative Arts, Fredericksburg, VA | Eye/Mirror Exhibit

1999 – President’s Council Prize | St. Louis Artists Guild, St. Louis, MO

1993 – Juror’s Award | The Photo Review Competition | Juror: Duane Michals

1992 – Honorable Mention | Delaplaine Arts Center, Frederick, MD

1990 – Second Place Award | Fairfax Council of the Arts, Fairfax VA

1989 – Honorable Mention | Sowebo Arts Festival, Baltimore, MD

 

Exhibitions

Selected Group Exhibitions
2023 Generations Crit II, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  Juried Photography Exhibit, Rehoboth Art League, Rehoboth, DE
  Biennial Exhibit, Harford Community College, Bel Air, MD
  Brilliance Exhibit, Artforms Gallery, Boston, MA
  Delaplaine Arts Center, Frederick, MD
  Online Gallery Exhibit, The Photo Review Competition 2023
  Big Show, Creative Alliance, Baltimore, MD
2022 National Juried Photo Exhibit, Delaplaine Art Center, Frederick, MD
2021 Cumberland Valley Artists Exhibit, Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Hagerstown, MD
  Cumberland Valley Photographers Exhibit, Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Hagerstown, MD
2020 Focus Photography Exhibit, Delaplaine Art Center, Frederick, MD
2019 Women's Work, Full Circle Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  Superheroes, Y-Art Gallery, Baltimore, MD
2017 Juried Photography Exhibit, Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Hagerstown, MD
  Black and White, Brooklyn Waterfront Artists’ Collective, Brooklyn, NY
2016 National Juried Exhibition, Delaplaine Art Center, Frederick, MD
  Howard County Center for the Arts, Ellicott City, MD
2015 Light Ekphrasis Project, LED Art Billboard, Baltimore, MD
  Blood Red Invitational, Howard Community College, Columbia, MD
2014 Laughing Pint Exhibit – Sleepwalk, Baltimore, MD
2013 Knowing, Area 405 Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  2013 Juried Exhibit, Delaplaine Visual Arts Center, Frederick, MD
2012 Juried Exhibit, Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, DE
  Station North Salon Exhibit, Baltimore, MD
2007 The Muse Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2006 1212 Gallery, Richmond, VA
  Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, Washington DC
2005 Photo National, Lancaster Museum of Art, Lancaster, PA
  Fredericksburg Center for the Arts, Fredericksburg, VA
  Art Institute and Gallery, Salisbury, MD
2004 Artscape, Baltimore, MD
  The Art Connection, The Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
2003 Just Color, Artforms Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
  Snapshot, Contemporary Museum, Baltimore, MD
2002 Seeing Is Believing, Montpelier Arts Center, Laurel, MD
2001 Photoworks Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  Artscape, Baltimore, MD
  Personal Narratives, Howard County Center For The Arts, Ellicott City, MD
2000 Maryland Artists Series, Government House, Annapolis, MD
  Positive / Negative, Slocumb Galleries, East Tennessee University
  Beveled Edge Gallery Annual Show, Baltimore, MD
  Artscape, Baltimore, MD
1999 National Photography Biennial, Silvermine Arts Center, New Canaan, CT
  Womens Caucas For Art, St. Louis Artists Guild, St. Louis, MO
  Artscape, Baltimore, MD
1998 Reunion Invitational, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  I Can See Clearly Now, Maryland Artists Series, Governor’s Mansion, Annapolis, MD
1997 Spectra 97, Silvermine Guild Arts Center, New Canann, CT – Juror: Robert Sobieszek
  Under No Management, Rockville Arts Place, Rockville, MD
  Seventh Annual Photo Exhibit, Shepherd State College, Shepherdstown, WV
  Night Lights, Metropol Gallery, Baltimore, MD
1996 Woman The Artists View, Bennington Center For The Arts, Bennington, VA
  Making Waves In The Mid Atlantic, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  Artscape, Baltimore, MD
1995 Shared Rights, Shared Responsibilities, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA | Trout Gallery
  Solo Exhibit, Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA
  Solo Exhibit, Harford Community College, Bel Air, MD
  State Of The Art Invitational, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
1994 Myths, Dreams & Mysteries, Delaware Center For The Contemporary Arts, Wilmington, DE
  Solo Exhibit, School 33 Art Center, Baltimore, MD
  Artscape 94, Baltimore, MD
  Three Women, Loyola College, Baltimore, MD
  Between The Sexes, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
1993 All Media Exhibit, Contemporary Arts Center, North Adams, MA – Curators: Nancy Graves, Elizabeth Sussman
  Secret Pages Invitational, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  Women Image Women, Life of Maryland Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  Art In The Era of Aids, Dickinson College, Carlisle PA | Trout Gallery
  Proof Positive, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD – Curator: Connie Imboden
  Photography On The Edge, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD – Curator: Douglas Davis
  Photography 93 New Genres, Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA – Curator: Phillip Brookman
  Art in Action Invitational, Towson University, Towson, MD
  Artscape 93, Baltimore, MD
1992 Solo Exhibit, The Pearl Gallery, Richmond, VA
  Critic’s Picks, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  Synchronicity Space, New York, NY
  Maryland Artists For Choice, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  Body And Soul, Warren Street Gallery, Hudson, NY – Curator: Kiki Smith
  City Visions, Gallery At Harborplace, Baltimore, MD
  Altered Images Traveling Photo Exhibit, Bowie State College, Bowie, MD – Curator: Angela Adams, National Museum For Women In The Arts
  Right Down To The Roots, Delaplaine Arts Center, Frederick, MD
  Women As Protagonist, Goucher College, Baltimore, MD
  Maryland Artists Series, University Of Maryland Art Gallery, College Park, MD
  Critics Residency Program, Maryland Art Place, Baltimore, MD
  Aids / Aid Invitational, Bauhaus Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  Visual Aids, Baltimore Museum Of Contemporary Art
1991 Knight-Gomez Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  Baltimore Artists Exhibit, Bauhaus Gallery, Baltimore, MD
  Momediano Galería de Arte, Madrid, Spain
  Out Exhibit, Santa Monica, CA
1990 Annual Juried Exhibit, Fairfax Council Of The Arts, Fairfax, VA – Juror: Phillip Brookman | Corcoran Gallery | Second Place Award
  Sowebo Photography Exhibit, Baltimore, MD | Honorable Mention
  1990 Juried Exhibit, Howard County Center For The Arts, Maryland – Juror: Brian Wallis, Photo Editor, Art In America Juror’s Award
  Baltimore Emerging Artists Show, Bauhaus Gallery Baltimore, MD
1989 Sowebo Photography Exhibit, Baltimore, MD
  Artscape 89, Baltimore, MD
Solo Exhibitions
2017
The Memory of Stars
Creative Alliance, Baltimore, MD
2005 Severn Graphics Gallery, Baltimore, MD
1995 Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA
  Harford Community College, Bel Air, MD
1994 Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts, Wilmington, DE
  School 33 Art Center, Baltimore, MD
1993 The Pearl Gallery, Richmond, VA

 

 

Reviews

The Baltimore Guide – Artscape Previews | Eric Miller | 7/2001

The Howard County Times – Art Maryland is Farsighted | Mike Guiliano | 11/2000

The Baltimore Guide – Mary Skeen: Photographs To Frighten | Eric Miller | 7/1999

The Baltimore Sun – Artscape Review | John Dorsey | 7/1997

Koan Art Newsletter – Washington DC | “Critic’s Roundtable: Must See” | 12/1995

Washington City Paper, Washington DC | A Site for Sore Eyes | 4/1995

The City Paper, Baltimore, MD – Gallery | Mike Guiliano | 10/1995

The City Paper, Baltimore, MD – Gallery | Mike Guiliano | 4/1994

The City Paper, Baltimore, MD – Paired to Care | Mike Guiliano | 12/1993

The Baltimore Sun – Proof Positive Captures a Good Life… | John Dorsey | 12/1993

The Alternative, Baltimore, MD – Collaboration | R. Grau | 12/1993

The Patriot, Harrisburg, PA – Exhibit Marks World Aids Day | Sandy Cullen | 11/1993

The Baltimore Sun – In Map Exhibit, Only Some Secrets are Worth Repeating | John Dorsey | 9/1993

The Baltimore Sun – Women’s Paintings, Photographs are Studies in Aloneness | John Dorsey | 8/1993

The Washington Post, Washington DC – Galleries | Lee Fleming | 4/1993

The Washington Review, Washington DC – Art Review | Lee Fleming | 10/1992

The Washington Review, Washington DC – Mary Kunaniec Skeen | Katherine Carl | 10/1992

The Baltimore Sun – Picks Are Both Individual & Universal | 7/1992

The Baltimore Sun – Series Show Of Maryland Artists | John Dorsey | 4/1992

The Montgomery County Gazette, Bethesda, MD – Maryland on View | Roberta Morgan | 4/1992

The Baltimore Sun – Goucher Show Examines Womanhood | John Dorsey | 4/1992

The Evening Sun, Baltimore, MD – Diverse Works At Local Galleries | Mike Guiliano | 7/1991

The Baltimore Sun – Art Review | John Dorsey | 7/1991

The City Paper, Baltimore, MD – Shows That Tell | Carol Wood | 12/1990

The Towerlight, Towson MD – Entangling Art from Mary Skeen | 3/1991

The Howard County Times – Lot to See at Art Maryland '90 | Mike Guiliano | 11/90

The Baltimore Sun – Art Review | John Dorsey | 11/1990

The Times, Fairfax, VA – Exhibition of Regional Art | Rich Nahum Arbel | 6/1990

Publications

The Photo Review – Annual Competition 1994

The Photo Review – Annual Competition 1993 | Juror’s Honorable Mention | Juror: Duane Michals

Australian Women’s Forum Cammeray, New South Wales, Australia – Gallery | six page feature story | 9/1992