Remembering Maria Tanner

Maria the Artist

Maria Tanner had an unusual blending of talents: exceptional hand-eye coordination and manual dexterity; an innate understanding of color, composition and harmony; and an attraction to precision.

These talents, coupled with a sense of whimsy and a great deal of patience, enabled Maria to create detailed imaginative drawings that were both precise and complex, yet innocently childlike, all of which combined in a way that was especially soothing to her.

Over the years, Maria acquired a large collection of colored pens and pencils which she used to make intricate drawings on plain white paper: a hobby she practiced during times of internal tension or boredom.

This worked especially well when she was trapped on the phone, either in a business meeting or simply listening to a friend or coworker who just wouldn't stop talking. (As a rule, Maria never enjoyed long conversations, even with old friends. Whenever possible, she would escape by using her considerable social skills to gently end the conversation as quickly as possible.)

Even when she was home alone with the phone turned off, drawing worked well for Maria when she needed to escape from the rest of world. Working patiently with her colored pens, Maria would still her thoughts, take refuge inside herself, and slowly discharge the residual tension from the difficulties of her day-to-day life.

Below are three partial images taken from drawings that are representative of Maria's work over the last few years of her life.

Click any one of the images and you will see the full-size drawings, one at a time. You will then return to this page.

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