Karen Elizabeth Margulis 

I grew up in South Florida and spent the summers in the mountains of Western North Carolina.  Both places have fostered my love for the sea and the mountains.  I graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Education and attended Florida Atlantic University working towards a degree in Art Education.

I spent the last 18 years along with my husband Michael, raising two children and running a home daycare.  I  continued to take art courses and studied photography for three years at the Showcase School in Atlanta, Georgia.  While our children were young, we traveled extensively around the United States and the Caribbean.  Many of my paintings are inspired by memories and photos of these travels.  In 2005, I discovered the medium of Pastel and found a passion for painting.  I am currently studying under Marsha Savage and have taken workshops with Terry Ludwig, Albert Handell and Anita Louise West. I am currently represented by David's Fine Art in Murphy, North Carolina. I am a member of the Southeastern Pastel Society, Georgia Outdoor Painters and Daily Painters.com.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Our world is full of color and beauty.  Sometimes it is obvious like the majesty of the Grand Canyon.  But ordinary things can have a subtle beauty of their own.  Consider a path winding through the dunes or the moment the trees glow pink from the light of the setting sun.  I try to seek out these special places and moments in time and capture them in my paintings.  When I paint, whether it be on location or from my photographs, I am totally immersed in the scene.  With each stroke of my pastel, I try to express what is special and unique about my subject.  It is my hope that when someone looks at my paintings, they too can feel the peace I felt and appreciate the quiet beauty of our world.