Press

Artists of South Sound - January 2002
by Elizabeth Bennett (Editor & Publisher)

Growing up on a farm sparked Margie McGinley's zeal for horses. Recreating them as an adult artist enhances that passion.

"I've been drawing since I was a kid, and I always drew horses. I was an only child and the only things to play with were the farm animals," says McGinley with a grin. "I was always horse happy."

As she got older, McGinley's horse drawings became more realistic, more refined. Then she decided to make her horses different and more colorful.

"The biggest frustration was it became too confining to paint nature as nature is. I wanted to go out and play with lots of color."

McGinley's creative renditions of horses never lack color. Although the basic drawing is clearly a horse, the finished piece resembles a delicate quilt with multiple textures and fabrics. Using tiny squiggles, crosshatching, circles and other intricate designs, she divides the horse into sections of shapes and colors.

"The geometric shapes come from my drafting background. Besides, I love doing all those little pen strokes - it's very meditative."

The medium of the paintings vary, depending on the mood she wants to convey. Her choice of drawing materials includes Radiograph pens of assorted sizes, a quill pen, India ink, oil pastels, colored pencil, colored acrylic ink and watercolor paints. However, her subject never changes. Because most of her paintings are of her favorite animal her company is called "Horses, of Course!"

The images are multicolored, engaging and energetic. McGinley says her association with other artists has nourished her emotionally and artistically, which keeps her working to get her work into the market. Wanting to improve her art even more, McGinley enrolled in a workshop in Texas that was taught by a world-renowned equine artist, Marilyn Todd-Daniels.

"People said my art really turned around after that. Then I did an Arts Walk and that was really a big boost for me and I've also exhibited with Arts Olympia."

The consistency of exhibiting her art not only has increased her visibility, it also gives her confidence to enter more shows. While she and her daughter, Laurie McGinley, were sharing a booth at the Western Art Show at the Puyallup Fair last October their work drew the attention of the John Clymer Museum curator. He invited them to show their work at the Ellensburg museum's 10th anniversary event featuring "Dynamic Duos." The exhibit spotlighted six Northwest artists who were mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, or otherwise related.

However, not every painting is earmarked for an exhibit. Sometimes she creates her colorful, complex horses because painting is an inseparable part of her life.

"I do art because I can not not do it," McGinley says. "If I haven't done art for awhile I'm restless, I get a little depressed, I get resentful - I could run the gamut of al the feelings."

When asked where she gets her idea for a new drawing, McGinley laugh and shrugs her shoulders.

"Often times it starts with just a doodle. For the purple piece (left) I laid watercolor down and let it do it's thing. It's like watching clouds as a kid, if there's something in there it will be a horse, of course. In my own mind those pieces are the more successful and they're the ones I like the best."

Festivals Directory Northwest- Winter/Spring 2001

Festivals Directory Northwest is a non-profit organization that produces a quarterly magazine, detailed directory, and resource guide to 1800 festivals, fairs, and camps in Washington, Oregon, British Columbia, Montana, Idaho and Alaska.

For the Winter 2000/Spring 2001 edition, Chris Lunn, Volunteer Editor for Festivals Directory Northwest, interviewed Marge McGinley after seeing her artwork at the Western Art Show in Puyallup, Washington. Excerpt follows, courtesy of Festivals Directory Northwest.

"The outside of the horse is good for the inside of man."

"They were powerful, moving, literally flying, full of energy and movement. Some were racing with a jockey on board; others were pairs of running horses, others head shots of a proud creature. These were more than horses.'

Born in North Dakota and spending much of her time on a farm, Margie was drawn to horses from early on and was, as she says, 'doodling' since then. From that farmhouse and the fields with draft horses, the art had begun.

"I was always horse crazy, like most young girls. You go to 4H, FAA barns at fairs and horses are shown by girls, ten to one. We are drawn to horses because they represent power. They are symbolic of freedom, spirit, joyful movement, a beautiful power and energy. Horses represent steadfastness, faithfulness. A draft horse is very faithful."

Her life carried her to long stints in California, Wyoming and then, 20 years ago, she moved to Washington. So what go her back to the art and this modern, highly stylized work?

'"Ten years ago I found myself living alone and I went back to serious producing and began to develop this style. I got away from the representational, the realist. The bottom line was, I go frustrated. The representational approach dictated on how I was supposed to do it. I didn't want to copy nature. That was not satisfying to my self. So, I just started doodling, experimenting. I don't know where the style came from, it was just a gift."

These power laden, elegant horses are in black and white as well as color.

"The natural horses colors are what I use. I don't stray too far. Horses are joyful movement. I particularly am drawn to draft horses since they were around as a little girl in the 40's. Back then the draft horse was still used as a farm worker. I have a friend, who still occasionally uses his draft horse on the farm. There is a resurgence in draft horses, even in the art field. There are draft horse organizations, and in Grass Valley they have an annual draft horse classic art show with paintings, drawing and more. It is becoming a big part of that art world...

I have entered that point in my life that is like that poem - I Shall Wear Purple - and I can be different and don't have to follow the rules like when I was younger...

My wildest goals in the next five years are to get into more festivals, but do some new contemporary art that conveys emotional reaction and touches people at an even deeper level. Also [I] want to do some spiritual art work and continue to develop the art horses, so full of life."

This woman is not on hold anymore. The horses are out of the barn and running wild.