I´m glad you are here, let me introduce myself: my name is Maria Laura Mc Donnell Smith, I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and moved to Raleigh, North Carolina in July 2019.

Since I was little, I showed aptitude for drawing, a technique that I perfected throughout my youth.

My work is guided entirely by my intuition and I try to capture the emotions that I feel without any prior plan or expectations. Then the brushstrokes are flooded with colors, textures are intertwined and, the creative moment that gives shape to my paintings begins. I feel like I´m channelling energies through my body that needed to be expressed.

I believe painting is a communication between the soul and the world. It´s listening to my heart and trusting in the process.

Inspired by colors and textures, both in art and in life, I am very fond of landscapes, nature and animals. Dazzled by natural phenomena and the cosmos.

History

I´m a graphic and visual designer graduated at the University of Buenos Aires in 2001.

After working as a designer for 7 years, something started to bother me, and I didn´t feel happy with my profession. It was then when my partner motivated me to attend the creativity studio of Marcela Hempe, who became my first true art professor and my mentor.

At the beginning I was not confident with painting at all, I found my artistic voice in 2012 when I painted my first collection “Fluir” and since that moment my creative path has been evolving.

Through the years I´ve discovered and perfected new techniques that captivate me. I have created more than 220 paintings, on canvas and paper that have been distributed all over the world, from my beloved Argentina, to Chile, Uruguay, Perú, Colombia, México, Brazil, Italy and The U.S.

My Paintings

Since 2007 I have worked with a wide range of techniques, Oil, acrylic, watercolors, mixed media, etc. This is how I have developed at least 13 different collections. My most recent serie “Broken Promises”, is the one I feel the most satisfied with. The color compositions, the layers, textures and techniques used in it, show my experience of more than 17 years as an artist.

Most of my acrylic and water color paintings are started and completed in the same day. As I paint with the flow of my emotions, I have to capture the feeling in the moment as its happening and let the energy flow from inside me onto the canvas. On the other hand oil paintings can take several weeks to set. After finishing a painting, I feel relief, joy and fulfillment, as if I brought something out me that needed to be expressed to the world.

Thanks for being here! I hope my paintings challenge you, thrill you and talk to you with an invisible message but direct to you.

Chronology

2007 – 2009 My first abstract paintings.
2011 – 2012 I traveled to Europe and visited a lot of countries and different cultures. When I came back I made my first Art Exhibition, plenty of inspiration and energy, the Collection was called “Fluir” (to flow)
2013 I had another trip to Europe and the Middle East , the different cultures, landscapes, smells and colors were an inspiration for me when I came back to Argentina.
2014 I started taking drawing classes at Laura Delgado Studio.
2015 We moved to another country, Chile. The new life being far away from my loved ones, made me connect with the painting in another way, I left my work as a graphic designer and started to paint as a way of living.
2016 My first group exhibition in Chile, with Taller Bellavista where I learned Hyperrealism
2017 We came back to Buenos Aires. I had a painful surgery that took a long time to recover. I didn´paint that year, because I had to use all my energy to heal.
2018 At the begining of this year I assisted Maxi Bagnasco Studio, to perfect my hyperrealism painting. In May I traveled with my husband to The United States and it was amazing, we visited a lot of cities and wonderful places on the west Coast. On a flight Back to Buenos Aires I met Nora, who inspired me to reconnect with my essence. Back in Buenos Aires I started to paint again and decided to commit to painting for the rest of my life.
2019 At the beginning of the year I made 2 new collections, “Energía Universal” (Universal Energy) and “Revolución” (Revolution). In the middle of 2019, we had the opportunity to move to USA for my husband’s work and by July we were already living in Raleigh, North Carolina. The landscapes and the energy of the place helped me with the sadness of being far away again and also made the distance less painful. A lot of Green, nature, Life!
2020 I started painting again, at the beginning of the pandemic I created a new Collection, “Calm”. It reflects my inner process to stay calm in the middle of the chaos that the world was going through (Pandemic). “Calm” helped me to be centered, focused and kept a balance between my wishes and the possibilities available. It helped me to avoid the fear and the anxiety. In October 2020 I launched my first website. I also had 2 big paintings commisioned, and the series “Fucking Glorious” was created, inspired by the murals and street art of Bushwick and Wynwood that I had the chance to visit 2 years ago.
2021-22 I´ve painted 2 more Collections, ¨Deep Ocean¨ and ¨Never Ending¨, totally different from one to the other, but both reflects my emotions during these unique times. Deep Ocean made my go deep inside my feelings, feelings of melancholy, anxiety and uncertainty were transformed into relax and let it flow. Never Ending, is totally different, evoques the emotions of love, peace, energy moving and changing for the good. Gratefulness and Mindfulness. This collection was a total blessing for me.
2022 Launch of the new “Eternal Bond” collection, a tribute to all mothers and their unconditional and eternal love. At the end of October, collective exhibition at Palacio Barolo, Buenos Aires, Argentina. One of the venues of “The Night of the Museums”. Life surprised me and I decided to take advantage of the opportunities. This last trip to Buenos Aires was an invitation to connect with my emotions, with my memories and to enjoy and appreciate every minute close to my family and friends. A blessing. And my new collection “Memories” is inspired by these magical moments with my loved ones.
2023 “Todas” collection was created in Buenos Aires, during hard emotional times there. I felt that I need more women around me and TODAS was painted as a tribute to all my friends, family women and of course my Mom that were close to me always. In May I painted another artwork part of Fucking Glorious collection, but this time It had a glow in the dark effects, giving more playful energy to the painting.
“Never Ending” collection exhibition, at LaMantia Gallery in Raleigh. My first grupal exhibition in US. In November 2023, I launched my latest collection “Broken Promises”, and exhibited at LaMantia Gallery Raleigh for the entire month. It was my return to oil painting and I am really satisfied and in love with the result of this collection.
2024 “Layers of Existence” collection was started painting during my long stay in Buenos Aires, a set of 2 big format canvases are left in my born city and the collection is going to grow in Raleigh during the first semester of this year. Let’s see what comes next !

Exhibitions and Shows

2023 – Grupal Exhibition – LaMantia Gallery Raleigh – US
2022 – Grupal Exhibition – Palacio Barolo – Noche de los Museos – Buenos Aires.
2019 – Grupal Exhibition – Municipalidad de Vicente Lopez – Buenos Aires.
2019 – Individual Exhibition – Bike and Coffee – Buenos Aires
2016 – Group Exhibition – Galería Ximena Cristi – Bellavista – Chile
2012 – Grupal Exhibition – Godoy Art – Hipódromo de San Isidro – Buenos Aires.
2012 – Group Exhibition – Foro de las Artes y las Ciencias Vicente López, Buenos Aires.
2010 – Group Exhibition – Open Arts Norcenter. – Individual Exhibition – Papa Charlie, Punta del Este – Uruguay