MARIA TUMA: Artist

AWARDS - PREMIOS:

Governor Haydon Burns Scholarship; Florida - 1967. Beca de pintura.

National Scholastics; gold key in oil painting; National Competition; 1966.
Medalla de Oro en una pintura en Oleo, competencia Nacional Escolástica.

1966 Silver Knight Award; Miami Herald.
Premio otorgado por el periódico Miami Herald

WQBA Honorable Mention on the opening of my art show at the Bacardi
Art Gallery; 1975. Mención de Honor en el programa de Radio WQBA por la Exposición de Arte en el edificio Bacardi en Miami.

1976 NIKON Award of Excellence in Nature Photography; NY. City; NY.
Premio de Excelencia en Fotografía por la NIKON

1977 Certificate of Appreciation for the contribution to the community from Dade County Mayor Steve Clark.
Certificado del Alcalde de Miami Sr. Clark, por contribuir con la comunidad.

1991 Certficate of Appreciation from Julio Martinez; Mayor of Hialeah; Fla.
for the Advisory Board Care for the Soldiers in the Gulf War.
Certificado del Alcalde de Hialeah, por ayudar al envio de regalos de Navidad a los soldados en 1991.

1992 Kiwanis Club of Hialeah, for donating her artistic talent to the community.

Maria and her students received many Art Awards and commendations throughout the years in Dade County Public Schools. Los alumnos de Maria
han recibido muchos premios en ARTE debido a su enseñanza.

2004 Keep Alachua County Beautiful, plaque Silver Award for Outstanding Achievement by Media and Public Relations. 2004. Poster designs donated.
Mantener Bello el Condado de Alachua, placa de plata por donar diseños de afiches promoviendo el arte en esa ciudad. 2004.

2010 Merit Award for "PARROT", an Oil Painting at Rossetti Art Gallery,
Pompano Beach Florida August 2010. Premio de Merito en su óleo titulado "Cotorra" en la Galeria de Arte Rossetti en Pompano, Florida 2010

2011 Accepted as a Member in ASTA American Society of Traditional Artists January 2011.

• 2011 Second Place on the Self Portrait entitled: "Marie d' Art" in the Art Exhibit sponsored by the Broward Art Guild of Ft Lauderdale, Fla.
Premio de Segundo Lugar en mi autoretrato: "Maria de Arte" en Broward Art Guild of Ft Lauderdale, Fla.

. 2011 The Richeson Painting Competition: Animals, birds and wildlife. Finalist on "Parrot" oil 36"x 36".
Finalista en la pitura titulada:"PARROT=COTORRA", recibí una medalla.

. 2014 The Richeson Figure Portrait Competition Meritorious Award on "Grand Christmas" 40"x30"
Recibí Premio de Merito en el oleo: "Grande Navidad".
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Artist Statement

At the age of 9 in Havana, Cuba, María won a prize for a drawing she made of the cartoon "Poky the Pig", she was interviewed by Gaspar Pumarejo on TV and this gave María some more enthusiasm to focous in Art. When she arrived in Miami, Florida and continued her education in Junior High, her teachers saw her talent, received awards and went to Barry University and graduated as an Art Teacher. She taught elementary, middle and highschool students as well as adults in Miami dade County Public Schools.

In 2011 María is spending more time painting in oils and was accepted by ASTA:

American Society of Traditional Artists founded by Ed Copley early on 2011. Mr. Copley asked her to paint more still-lives in oils for museum exhibitions...
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Some people have told me to make series of a certain subject matter because galleries like to identify an artist with a body of work. I like many things to limit myself to seascapes, landscapes, animals: dogs, horses, chickens in a farm, sheeps, some patriotic themes, people (my favorite subject), children, religious and Biblical illustrations or representations, portraits, fruits, vegetables or flowers on a still-life, ballet and flamenco dancers, in a realistic-impressionistic genre. I have also done expressionistic representations of peole as shown in my acrylics, which many people have told me that they like those a lot.
I think about how much life time I have left to be able to paint all that I want, sort of listed above... and more...However little by little I will continue to do and paint what I can. It is not easy, with little finantial income and how expensive life is today and the high cost of art supplies, frames, advertising, etc.

People ask me what do you paint? My answer is: many things and almost any thing. Hoping to continue overcoming obstacles of many sorts, to be able to complete many paintings already started and make some new ones and be able to see them sold in my lifetime. It would be absolutely boring to me to do the same thing over and over again -because it sells- and that is what the galleries want or how the "art" market is established at the present time. It is boring to me to paint, (for instance), all FAT PEOPLE over and over again...or just seascapes.

I'm trying to achieve a classical look. I'm trying to control my self in order to achieve the degree of realism I desire. The fast loose brush strokes comes natural to me; it is the fine control that I need to work on....and also I want to do some of those loose abstract-expressionistic and some impressionistic as well. It is a race against time...but I enjoy running it or walking it. As GOD helps me day by day.
When I wrote this in 2007 I was 59 yrs. old and taking care of my elderly mother;
I did not have much time to paint doing all the homework that was necessary.

Miami, Fl. November 28, 2007- Revised April 22, 2018