Born and raised in the midwestern US and currently living in Colorado, Mary enjoyed a 30-year career as a research virologist with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Following retirement, she began studying botanical illustration at the Denver Botanic Gardens, School of Botanical Art and Illustration and was awarded the Certificate in Botanical Art and Illustration, with Distinction, in 2021. Mary was accepted into the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, Diploma Online 2021-24 course, and was also approved by the Royal Horticultural Society in 2021 to exhibit work at a future RHS show. She is an SBA Fellow and a member of the ASBA, ABA, SBA, and RMSBA.

Working in colored pencil, watercolor and graphite, Mary’s artwork has been shown in juried exhibitions at Plantae 2022, Mall Galleries (SBA), London, the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London (ABBA, digital exhibition), at Wave Hill, Bronx, NY, (ASBA 23rd International, ASBA 25th International), the Denver Botanic Gardens, Denver, CO, the Betty Ford Alpine Garden, Vail, CO, the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History, Boulder, CO (RMSBA), and The Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs, CO (RMSBA). Additionally, her illustrations are in use on interpretive signs and publications by the Denver Mountain Parks Division, Denver, CO.