2025 SCHAEFER PORTRAIT CHALLENGE ENTRY, Maui Arts & Culture Center
This piece is currently on view at Capital Modern—Hawai‘i State Art Museum, Honolulu, Jan-June , 2026
Mary Love, Helping Hands
Mary Rose Love moved from Colorado to Hawai‘i in 2002, with parallel careers as a Registered Nurse and as a certified American Sign Language Interpreter. Interpreting is her true passion—she has worked with deaf communities since 1990. Deeply committed to equal access for all people, she is currently learning ‘Olelo Hawai‘i to become trilingual.
Her handshapes surrounding this portrait spell out her name for you. Look carefully and you will see the scar she earned by dislocating her hand while engaging in her favorite pastime, pickleball. Mary Love’s hand gesture in her portrait has no specific meaning in ASL; here she simply expresses her joy for life.
2025 HAWAI‘I NEI SHOW, Wailoa Center, Big Island, Awarded JUROR’S CHOICE
A Murder of Crows
In 2019 I had the rare privilege of siting an elderly and bedraggled ‘alalā on my own property in Puna. This particular piece, titled A Murder of Crows, was inspired by a tour/work day at the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center near Volcano where two-thirds of the planet’s remaining population reside. The many carefully curated exhibits at KBCC told the heart-breaking story of the ‘alalā’s struggle to survive and revive. “Murder” is the accepted collective term for crows, similar to a “pack” of dogs or a “flock” of sheep. It is especially appropriate in this case. The critically endangered ‘alalā (corvus hawaiiensis) is now the rarest crow in the world due in large part to the impact of humans’ introduction of non-indigenous species and to habitat destruction—depicted in the rouges’ gallery on the left side of this piece. Most ‘alalā are gone. But not all, as symbolized by the central ‘alalā’s beating heart (powered by a slowly blinking LED).
MORE…
go to ART! : Dogs
go to ART! : Retablo Series
Click on individual images to enlarge.
Accepted 2023 Hawai‘i Nei Show
Wailoa Center, Big Island
Accepted 2024 Surrealism Show
Wailoa Center, Big Island
Accepted 2021 Midsummer Show
Wailoa Center, Big Island
Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read.
[commonly attributed to Groucho Marx]
Accepted 2022 Journeys Show
Firehouse Gallery Kamuela, Big Island
Maturity, one discovers, has everything to do with the acceptance of ‘not knowing.’
[Mark Z. Danielewski]
Accepted 2022 Midsummer Show
Wailoa Center, Big Island
A giant malevolent golden eel (puhi) imprisoned Hina, goddess of the moon and mother of Maui the demigod, in the cave where she lived behind Rainbow Falls. Maui came to Hina’s rescue. In a ferocious battle, Maui killed the puhi and Boiling Pots were formed.
Accepted 2022 Schaefer
Portrait Challenge, Maui
First Place (Amateur Adult 3D)
2021 Hawai‘i Nei Exhibition
Wailoa Center, Big Island
Galeano Girls was created over six months of Zoom drawing sessions from Barcelona. I drew each of the 64 figures during a five-minute pose in charcoal on a 30″x48″ birch panel. There was no going back to “improve” or “correct” any of them. This celebration of the female body was an exercise in trust and courage for me. The text is by Uruguayan poet Eduardo Galeano.
La Iglesia dice: El cuerpo es una culpa.
La ciencia dice: El cuerpo es una máquina.
La publicidad dice: El cuerpo es un negocio.
El cuerpo dice: Yo soy una fiesta.
The church says: The body is a sin.
Science says: The body is a machine.
Advertising says: The body is a business.
The body says: I am a party.
MORE…
go to ART! : Dogs
go to ART! : Retablo Series
Deborah Masterson Art
Deborah Masterson Art
Deborah Masterson Art
Contact Deborah Masterson deborah@rhythmfullcircle.com
Deborah Masterson Art
Deborah Masterson Art
Deborah Masterson Art
RhythmFullCircle 