ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS – The Atlantic Highlands Art Council’s Art Corner’s current free exhibit, “Broken Crayons Still Color,” features the work of two local artists, Maggie Brown of Asbury Park and Ashley McFarland of the Highlands.
Maggie Brown has been an artist since she could remember, growing up with a creative mind and knack for painting. “It has always been an easier way of communicating for me,” she said.
Brown grew up in Ocean Township and attended Marymount Manhattan College in 2009 where she attained a B.A. in Studio Art. She creates most of her artwork using old resources or waste products in efforts to preserve and express the splendor of timeworn substances.
“I am constantly inspired by different textures and colors, especially in nature,” she said. “My motives are to help people step back and realize simple and abstract visuals can be moving, and that broken, rusty, chipped, and old things can be new and beautiful.”
Brown manipulates her work into images of nature and landscape on canvas, comprising layered pieces of collected resources such as cardboard, egg crates, and gold foil. “This method allows me to capture textures, which exist due to industrial byproducts as well as the natural world; both have stages of renewal and decay,” she said.
Ashley McFarland studied at Montclair State University, where she received a B.A. in Fine Arts with a concentration in printmaking and education.
Her artwork focuses on fluid line drawings, frequently producing abstract images of “Mother Nature’s creatures,” such as woman and animals intertwined, according to the Atlantic Highlands Art Council. McFarland’s inspiration is music, people, and her home environment.
The Arts Corner, located on 135 First Ave., is a small venue that presents various exhibits throughout the year. For more information, visit aharts.org.
By Samantha Caramela
Mermaid Warrior by Ashley McFarland
COURTESY AH ARTS COUNCIL
