I have challenged myself to do a series of petite collages. No easy feat when you are used to 22” x 30”. Using my sketch of a perky bantam rooster, I collaged the rooster shapes with yellow, tan, and orange feathers. Keeping the background simple and plain because of the small area to work, I […] more »
Continuing my animal theme in the petite size, this is our pygmy goat, Verne. He is quite the character standing in the sunflower patch. I painted the background first, before cutting the positive shapes of Verne and the flowers. more »
This is a whimsical design of nine Iowa hogs running through the tulips. Not something you see every day. I used pieces of an Iowa map for the sky shape and a variety of different colored hogs, plus a green-grass foreground and some happy red and pink tulips. more »
I am continuing my bicycle series and loved the challenge of doing a smaller piece. I began with a simple line drawing of a bicycle close-up and started gluing some of the positive shapes. Halfway through gluing, I decided to add another smaller bike above it — a bit of a squeeze, but it adds […] more »
I have been doing a series of bicycles for my upcoming show for the Artisan’s Gallery in Des Moines. This is the seventh in the series. While cutting some of the map pieces, I have been noticing places of interest and small towns in the state of Iowa. Especially interesting are the scenic routes. The […] more »
This collage is part of my Iowa Series started way back in ’85. My first collages were a small square format of barns and farm animals. Over the years these have evolved to include other elements of farm life. I love the patterns of spots on the dairy cows and the interesting shapes of barn […] more »
For this piece, I used one of my reference photos taken many years ago of a barn down the road. I added a windmill from another neighbor’s farm, as it’s a popular agricultural icon. I used artistic license for the barn’s colors. Another favorite element of my farmscapes is using an Iowa map for the […] more »
This design took a complete 180 from what I thought would be a perfect flower garden. At the start I chose a dark burnt sienna background — a different color for me, and I added the bold sunflower on top. Then I was at a standstill for many weeks. Last week I envisioned a much different composition […] more »
Two of Marybeth Heikes’ original collages have been selected for the 22nd annual Greater Des Moines Exhibition. Her collages, RAGBRAI, depicting a close up of a bicycle wheel and pieces of Iowa map of the Mississippi river towns, and Supreme Sunflowers with Red Stems, a floral bouquet, will be part of this exhibit featuring Iowa […] more »
A Daily Painting of one of my famous Iowa barns. Although the barn has disappeared from the landscape, it is still full of character in this piece, with its raggedy roof and weathered boards. Using artistic license, I added bits of bright color to give it more life. It was quite drab and plain. The […] more »