Published by Maryneil Dance
Maryneil Dance is a fourth generation daughter of the Texas Hill Country, which inspires her artwork with a deep connection to place. Before devoting her time fully to art, she enjoyed an award-winning 25-year career as an interior designer in Austin, Houston and Dallas. She is credited with creating the unique and cozy design style called “Texas Country French”.
After returning to the Hill Country, she devoted her time to capturing the rich beauty of the land and the mystic elegance of its animals in her current chosen medium of pastel. She is also prolific in watercolor, oil and handmade paper collage. Her influences, which are evident in the emotional landscapes she creates, include Hill Country artist Gordon Fowler and horse painter John Fawcett whose career started as a equine veterinarian. However, Maryneil credits her late Aunt Sissy who influenced her. She was a horsewoman, showing horses and dogs professionally all her life.
“I have painted in watercolor all my life and decided to expand my horizons when I moved from the city. I also love oil painting, enjoying the buttery texture of it, but I have fallen for pastel! Pastel is so tactile, you can move it around, layer, highlight, and it lends itself to the soft coats of animals. Pastel colors are brilliant and really enhance the beautiful landscapes and animals that are my subjects. I am inspired by every painting that I complete.”
Now retired, Maryneil has found peace living and painting on her Texas Ranch. “I feel as God speaks through me in each and every painting I create. I love bringing out the personality of the animals I portray and feel honored to reproduce this beautiful landscape God has created for us to enjoy.”
She and her husband Tom live and work on their ranch in Fredericksburg, Texas, with their dog Tippy, a small herd of Longhorns, two horses, a pair of miniature donkies, and a cat -- all of which inhabit her artwork from time-to-time.
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Art by Maryneil Dance 
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