An Artist's Life

An artist’s guide to creating expressively and living meaningfully “Being an artist is a joyful way of moving through the world and transcribing our experience for others to see and feel. Knowing what is essential to one’s soul and finding one’s true artistic voice is the catalyst and gateway to producing one’s most meaningful works of art.” —Mary Whyte, from the Introduction

During her fifty years as an artist and teacher, Mary Whyte has discovered that tapping our personal well of creativity and passion is the most important lesson—much more so than how to paint an eye or clouds or steam. In An Artist’s Life, Whyte guides art makers and art lovers past stifling obstacles and self-doubts to see the world with fresh eyes and create their most original and expressive work. A touchstone for developing the habits we need to live our most creative, inspired, and meaningful life, artists of all kinds, as well as non-artists seeking a more creative and fulfilling life, will return to this transformative life-long art lesson again and again. Includes seventy of Whyte’s acclaimed portraits and new, never-before-seen works.

Author Biography

Mary Whyte is an internationally recognized watercolor artist. Her books include We the People: Portraits of Veterans in America, Working South, and Down Bohicket Road. Whyte is the founder of the Patriot Art Foundation, a national initiative giving veterans a means of expression, connection, and purpose through art. She is the recipient of the Portrait Society of America’s Gold Medal and the National Daughters of the American Revolution Medal of Honor. She lives near Charleston, South Carolina, with her husband, Arnold Nemirow.