Marilyn Potter,approaching her 90th birthday, has been a working artist for decades. She has found a way to channel her color sense, design skills, and refined style into objects of profound beauty. Over the years. she's refined her style, color sense, and design skills in many media, from bird houses to portraits. When her daughter recently found an old chair she thought Marilyn might enjoy painting, the latest development in Marilyn's repertoire was born: repurposing abandoned furniture. Friends now know to keep a lookout for well-built tables, stools, chairs and even bureaus that have been discarded by others but would still respond to Marilyn's magic touch.
"My first memory of being an artist was at the age of five. I painted a picture in kindergarten which ended hanging in the Chamber of Commerce building in downtown Los Angeles. Art became my passion. Although World War II. intervened with plans for art school, I managed to always have some art project going. Life-size puppets, sitting on the porch, I painted anything and everything. I have done acrylic paintings, wooden birdhouses, most recently gnomes, in addition to re-purposing abandoned furniture--chairs, tables, cabinets, bureaus--it is a great feeling to take something that was just left on the street and bring it to life again!"
"I am a lifelong activist for the environment and human rights causes, and my art projects have led me to some meaningful insights. I've observed that people involved in the arts become more sensitive to human rights, to the need to address climate problems. That is how art improves us as human beings and improves the lives of others as well."
