Mary Boxley Bullington is a self-taught artist working in mixed media and collage who began her creative journey after an accomplished career in academia. During the first half of her adult life, she taught English and the Humanities, making the occasional collage in between. After earning her doctorate in medieval literature at Indiana University in the fall of 1993, she turned her full attention to art. Returning to her native city of Roanoke, Virginia, nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, she rented her first studio and began a new chapter of discovery. Within seven months, she presented her first solo gallery exhibition in Charleston, West Virginia, showcasing over thirty works that marked the emergence of a distinctive and expressive artistic voice.
A Journey Rooted in Self-Discovery
Bullington’s evolution as an artist has been defined by exploration and self-teaching. Free from the constraints of formal art training, she developed her own unique language of color, texture, and form through experimentation. This independence gave her work an unfiltered honesty, each piece evolving intuitively, driven by curiosity and emotion rather than convention.
Since 1998, she has worked full-time as an artist from her home studio in Roanoke, producing a large and diverse body of work. Beyond her personal practice, Bullington has played an essential role in nurturing the city’s art community. She is a founding member of The Market Gallery in downtown Roanoke and co-founder of the Roanoke Open Studios Tour, which she directed from 2005 to 2015. Both initiatives continue to foster artistic collaboration, accessibility, and dialogue in the region.
Recognition and Collections
Bullington’s art has earned recognition and inclusion in several prestigious collections. Her award-winning works are held by Virginia Tech, Carilion Hospitals, UVA Hospital, and the National Institutes of Health. Each painting reflects a blend of emotional resonance and structural rhythm, inviting viewers into a vibrant world where color and movement speak their own language.
The Language of Color and Motion
Color and motion form the foundation of Bullington’s artistic philosophy. Her paintings radiate energy, their layered surfaces alive with movement and rhythm. Whether figurative or non-objective, each work captures the sense of something in flux a balance between chaos and calm. Her compositions invite viewers to feel the pulse of the work rather than merely observe it, transforming still images into living experiences.
Wind Flowers: A Celebration of Memory and Energy
Among Bullington’s many evocative works, Wind Flowers stands out as a vivid example of her artistic vision. In this mixed media painting on paper, she draws inspiration from her grandfather’s garden, reimagining tulip magnolias tossing in a fierce spring breeze. The flowers seem to surge beyond the edge of the frame, animated by invisible forces of air and emotion.
Kinesis, the sense of motion, is central to the work. Through her use of collage, Bullington builds depth, texture, and rhythm. Each layer of paint and paper enhances the dynamic interplay of light and shadow, giving the impression of a living, breathing landscape. Her process is deeply personal; she paints all of her collage papers herself, ensuring that every piece of her art carries her individual touch. This meticulous, handcrafted approach gives her work authenticity and warmth.
From Literature to Visual Language
Although Bullington’s academic background is rooted in literature, her transition to visual art did not abandon storytelling; it transformed it. The narrative impulse that once guided her writing now flows through her colors, forms, and textures. Her paintings can be experienced like poems, layered, rhythmic, and open to interpretation.
Just as medieval literature often intertwines the sacred and the ordinary, her artwork unites intellect with instinct. The dialogue between collage and paint mirrors the balance between reason and emotion, order and spontaneity. Each composition becomes a meditation on transformation, how fragments of memory and feeling can come together to form something whole and alive.
Community, Creativity, and Continuity
Mary Boxley Bullington’s contributions extend well beyond her own studio. Through her art, leadership, and community involvement, she has become a vital part of Roanoke’s creative landscape. Her efforts in founding and directing collaborative art spaces reflect her belief that creativity flourishes when shared.
Her practice of collage serves as both medium and metaphor, piecing together fragments of experience to create harmony and meaning. Each artwork stands as a reflection of her journey: resilient, evolving, and deeply human.
The Art of Becoming
From the quiet study of medieval texts to the dynamic expressiveness of mixed media, Mary Boxley Bullington’s life and art embody transformation. Her work, rich in color, movement, and emotion, captures the essence of growth, the continual process of becoming.
Wind Flowers, along with her broader body of work, reminds us that beauty often arises through motion, the winds that change us, the memories that shape us, and the creativity that carries us forward. Through her art, Bullington transforms life’s fleeting moments into enduring visual poetry, offering viewers both energy and solace in every brushstroke and fragment.
