Mary Diefenbach Duke
Mary Diefenbach Duke is an oil and acrylic artist who thrives on the opportunity to paint almost daily, either plein air, or in studio, an oftentimes recurring theme of scenes in the Kittitas Valley. The seed of creating art was planted in my heart while attending Ellensburg High School. Over the decades it has been nurtured, but many times put into hibernation. My art education has focused on painting in oil or acrylic, and the use of color relationships, shape, value and texture, all to reflect my emotional response. I love to work on large panels. My use of color, texture, and painterly marks help me to express work generated by a recurring theme of experiences, or past moments in time, here in Ellensburg. My painting begins with an instant in time and place, and before the brush touches the canvas my interest has been captured and I can’t let it go. Perhaps I will begin Plein Air, sketch with notes, and take photos. It all comes to fruition in the Studio. My underlying goal is to capture the beauty around me and express it with the use of color and texture. It’s important to me that my audience find their own story, within mine. For me, that’s the sharing piece to art. An important work being developed is a depiction of the “Rhythm of the Farm”, specifically my Parents’, and Grandparents who homesteaded here. The art will be seasonal: From winter rest, spring preparations, summer growth, to Fall Bounty.
