My name is Pat Maskow Firem, and I am honored to be exhibiting some of my work here at Notre Dame Village. I like to experiment with a variety of mediums, some more successfully than others!  You may notice that much of my artwork draws upon the works of well known artists for the subjects.  These paintings are   not slavish copies, but tributes to the artists who inspired them. Each classical artist is carefully acknowledged.

 

  You may also observe that many of my artworks have a spiritual theme.  I find that art and spirituality come from a shared space within me. This is actually not unusual, as our creative selves and our spiritual selves are nurtured by the same “juices” as it were. As a psychologist, I know that these realms lie close to each other in the brain. 

 

     While I am not a professionally trained artist, I have benefited from many wonderful and gifted contemporary artists along the way. Let me mention my oil painting teacher of recent years, who is a sister of Notre Dame: Sister Marissa Lilley.  She and several others have kindly shared their own skills, and helped me to hone mine.  For these mentors I am truly grateful.  Artistry that is taught and shared become a rich food indeed.

 

     I hope that as you view these artworks, you too will feel inspired to develop your own creativity.

 

     Let me end with a quote from Russ Ramsey, author of Rembrandt is in the Wind:

     "By light we do our work.  By that same light, others behold it. 

 And all of the light is borrowed from God….Everything we make

 relies on the help of others."  pp109; 110