Norma Murphy
Norma Murphy was born and raised in the tranquil Appalachian Mountains fifteen miles west of Boone. The isolation kept her from experiencing many things, but it inspired her to formulate many curious ideas and visions about the people and world around her. These ideas are responsible for the fantastic genre of work that Norma produces today. Surrounded by rolling hills and lofty trees, Norma began creating as a small girl. Without the distraction of malls and soda shops, she spent her time exploring the woods and creeks around her rural home. Like a crawling vine, Norma was nurtured by her exposure to the elements and retained the aesthetic qualities present in the landscape. These components are visible in her figurative work today. Rich textures, curvaceous, linear lines, and intriguing perspectives are qualities present in all paintings. Increased sensitivity is another effect of Norma’s isolated upbringing. She was aware of the natural environment around her, not excluding the people she spent time with. Women are usually the subjects of Norma''s paintings. She finds satisfaction in “ take[ing] the small things that made [her] life as a mountain woman so unique and translate them into [my] being and art”. The artist’s style of painting is a compilation of Abstract Expressionism, Romanticism, and Fauvism, but the end result is unique to Norma. The canvases are covered in decorative patterns and colors from her family’s history. Norma's body of work was recently accepted into the archives of the National Museum of Women Artists in Washington D.C., securing her status as a treasure of artistic talent and cultural heritage.