About the Artist
ABOUT ANNIE
Although Annie McCoy loved art and painting in high school, her parents considered a career in art too risky. Thus, she pursued her other interest and became a veterinarian. In 2007, she decided to become an artist as well. Plein air painting has allowed her to combine her love of the outdoors, nature and art. Driven by her love of wild places and the adventures therein, Annie paints outdoors at every opportunity. Studio work is mostly reserved for inclement weather and winter.
She explains, “I am a home-grown Appalachian mountain girl who relishes her time in the wild. My hope is that I do justice in my tributes to our creator. Drawn to nature, its best and worst, I strive to capture my emotional response to being outdoors in beautiful places”.
Recently retired from veterinary medicine, Annie and her veterinary partner and husband, Dr. Ken Burgwin, moved from the Chesapeake Bay to full time residence in their home in southwest Montana. Prior to retirement, they would spend several weeks each year in Montana and nearby Yellowstone Park.
She focuses on sportsman’s art, wildlife and landscapes. Following her fly-fishing husband to trout filled streams has fueled her experiences as a plein air artist.
“My husband is a dedicated fly fisherman, and fortunately, as the great artist and fly-fisherman Frank Dumond noted, ‘Trout only live in beautiful places’. I accompany my husband, and while he fishes, I paint and enjoy the moment. Sometimes, if the fish aren’t biting, I am forced to pack up and move on meaning that I must finish the painting later in the studio! I do not consider myself an Alla Prima or direct painter, but instead, I consider myself an outdoor painter. I often paint in layers. I like to return again and again to the same location in order to complete a painting.”
Education
While having no formal art training, Annie has had the great fortune to experience workshops with many of America's premier artists including Dan Young, Scott Christensen, Ralph Oberg, Jane Jones, Barbara Nuss, Ed Cooper, Heiner Hertling, Peter Fiore, Skip Whitcomb, Matt Smith, Roger Dale Brown, Susan Blackwood, Howard Friedland, Greg Scheibel and Albert Handell. She continues to study with accomplished artists whenever possible.
Annie’s mentors include the sports celebrity portrait painter, George Wright, known for his Norman Rockwell flavored paintings, Nancy Tankersley, nationally known plein air and figurative painter, and Laura Era, portrait artist and owner of Troika Gallery in Easton, MD.
Memberships
- Oil Painters of America
- Women Artists of the West
- Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Association
- Chesapeake Plein Air Painters
- Cider Painters of America Miniature Society
- Southwest Montana Artists
Events
- Harford County Plein Air, 2016
- Burgwin-Wright House Plein Air 2016, People’s Choice Award
- Camp Hill Plein Air, 2015
- Solo exhibition, Main Street Gallery, 2015
- Solo exhibition, Frame of Mine, 2014
- Maryland Ducks Unlimited Artist, 2014
- Dorchester Center for the Arts, 2010, People’s Choice Award,
Contact Information
Annie McCoy Art
PO Box 161935
Big Sky, MT 59716
410-463-0645
