Bio
Mary Dwyer
Mary Dwyer was born in Bridgeport Connecticut. Her studio is in the historic American Fabrics Building in Bridgeport where cuny lace was once made. Mary has exhibited at Museums and galleries including The New Britain Museum of American Art (CT), Noyes Museum (NJ), ODETTA Gallery (New York), Smack Mellon (New York), Melanie Carr Gallery, (Essex, CT), Tiger Strikes Asteroid (New York), The Institute Library (New Haven CT), Artspace (New Haven, CT) , and London design show honoring Frank Lloyd Wright. Her work is in the Flat Files at Melanie Carr Gallery and is listed online by ODETTA on 1st dibs. She is a recipient of Connecticut Artist Fellowship Grant. Her paintings are in the collection of the New Britain Museum of American Art.
Mary Dwyer’s work is based in history, drawing and storytelling. The inspiration for Mary’s work revolves around historic events, a love of political cartoons and early portraiture paintings. An integral part of this work is research. Spurred by an innate curiosity and interest in social justice, she creates political, and personal paintings. In the last few years she has been researching and painting works on journalist, free press and the American Suffrage movement.
Awards
Born
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Solo Exhibitions
2004 Benedict Arnold, Druggist & Bookseller, Artspace, New Haven, Conn.
2002 NEW/NOW, New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, Conn
.
Patriot’s Weekend, Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Ridgefield, Conn
2000 George Washington & His Best Friends, Gallery 13, Danbury, Conn.
Fourth of July, Bergdorf Goodman Window Display, 5th Avenue, New
York, NY
Selected Group Exhibitions
2020 Bound up Together, Smack Mellon, Brooklyn, NY
Catenations, Tiger Strikes Asteroid, Brooklyn, NY
Turner’s Patent Yellow, ODETTA Gallery, New York, NY
2018 Shelf Life, History, Biography & Fame, Institute Library, New Haven, Conn.
In Grace We Trust Installation, Ely Center for Contemporary Art, New Haven, Conn
CT Contemporary, Silvermine Galleries, New Canaan, Conn
2017 Cool + Collected, Melanie Carr Gallery, Essex Connecticut
Nasty Women Show, The Institute Library, New Haven, Connecticut
2016 Votes for Women Installation, CWOS New Haven Armory
2015 Appropriation & Inspiration, New Britain Museum of American Art
2014 “Becoming…” ODETTA Gallery, Brooklyn, New York
2010 Women Artists @ New Britain Museum, New Britain Museum of American Art
Figurative Distance, Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism Gallery, Hartford
2009 FRANK, Exhibition Inspired by the Designs of Frank Lloyd Wright, Clarke & Reilly,
London, UK.
2006 Don’t Know Much About History, Artspace, New Haven, Conn.
2005 American Folk Art: Traditional and Spontaneous, New Britain Museum of American Art
2002 The Brewster Project, Brewster, New York
1999 L.T.D, Margaret Bodell Gallery, New York, New York
1998 Conviviality & Confetti: Holiday Imagery and Art, Noyes Museum of Art Gallery, N.J
1994 About Face, Real Art ways, Hartford, Connecticut
1993 American Gothic, Art in General, New York, New York
1992 Alien Art, Caged Angel Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts
1991 Somber, Pump House Gallery, Hartford, Connecticut
Grants
2008 Artist Fellowship Grant, Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism
Bibliography & Publications
Art New England Magazine Studio Visit, Jacquelyn Gleisner, March/April 2020
Women Artists @ New Britain Museum, Sherry Buckberrough, Nancy Noble, January 2011
New American Paintings, Open Studio Press, Wellesley, Massachusetts, February, 1998
Art In General, Manual 1992 and 1993, Copyright: Art in General, New York, New York, 1992
Press & Reviews
Nancy Elsamanoudi "Water of Life" Arcade Project, Oct 10, 2020
https://www.arcadeprojectzine.com/features/water-of-life
Katherine Gleason "On the Centennial of Women's Voting Rights, Suffragette Style Still Makes a Statement" 1st Dibs, Aug 10, 2020
https://www.1stdibs.com/blogs/the-study/suffragette-style/
Brian Slattery “Institute Library Gets 15 Minutes of Fame, New Haven Independent Oct 3,2018
Lucy Gellman “In Shelf Life Biographies Break Free” New Haven Arts Paper Oct 19,2018
Susan Dunne “Melanie Carr Gallery, Earth& Fire Gallery in Essex”, Hartford Courant, Oct.16,2017
Katie Killary, “Our Absolute Favorite Bushwick Art Shows Bushwick Daily, Jan.2, 2015
James Kalm, “Drifting Around Bushwick and the Lower East Side, Rough Cuts, Dec.16, 2015
Ben Genocchio, “Show Gives Art History Meaning” New York Times, Dec. 31st, 2006
Judy Birke, “ArtSpace Provocative Goes Beyond Any Textbook” New Haven Register, Dec.2006
Judy Birke, “The Familiar is Re-examined, Renewed in Disparate Shows” New Haven Register, Aug. 15th, 2004
Eleanor Charles, “Benedict Arnold” New York Times, (The Guide) Aug. 15th, 2004
L.P. Streitfeld, “The Brewster Project Wires the Zeitgeist” The Stamford Advocate, 7/2002
Diana Bellettieri, “Art Has its Day in Brewster” The Journal News, July 28th, 2002
D. Dominic Lombardi, “Washington: Not the Icon, Sometimes Even a Bit Giddy” The New York Times, March 5th, 2000
Jude Long Schwendenwien, “Lage and Dwyer, Somber” Hartford Courant, November 10th, 1991
Collections
New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, Connecticut
Flat File
Melanie Carr Gallery
Education
BFA The Hartford Art School, University of Hartford, West Hartford, Connecticut