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Mary M. Yurkutat

Biography

Mary Yurkutat took years to redirect her focus toward the art that interested her when she was young. "My father worked hard to get an education in the slivers of time he could find. He began a teaching career, but decided fairly soon that working for the church was his calling. Our family never had much money but we always had fists full of love." Mary enjoyed art, finished high school on an accelerated track while working in her family's restaurant, and traveled across North America. By the time Mary turned 20, she had married, given birth, and separated from her husband. She worked three jobs, making college impractical and pushing her painting canvases into the back of the closet.

In subsequent decades, Mary built a career in banking. "I had not been able to create as an artist for so many years. This left my spirit almost suffocated." Further personal difficulties contributed more perspective. Mary took time off from work and found fulfillment volunteering in a six-month project with United Way. "Taking college art classes started as a healing process. Now there is an ever-changing picture of life full with vibrant color and expression."

Unable to earn income because of health issues, Mary depended on financial aid and dedicated herself to her community college studies. She fully experienced campus life, spearheading the honor society's international day, coordinating the student art show, establishing rapport with professors, counselors, and students, and accepting nothing less than success in her art and studies.

"It amazes me every time I take mere clay to hand and create a life figure in a sculpture. It's almost like being able to breathe life into the dust of the earth."

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