About
Artist's Statement
My commitment to painting has to do with my commitment to nature itself. I want to make the argument that we need to appreciate, respect, and protect nature, both because our environment is an inestimable treasure and because it has the power to inspire, heal, and rejuvenate us at all stages of our lives.
When you're painting on site, it can be challenging to deal with the elements, capture the changing light, and find views that really speak to you. But these difficulties can push you to draw on hidden strengths. In addition, the energy you get from being outside can buoy you up emotionally, and you can invest that in your work. The result may not be in any way “perfect”—it’s often incomplete, even fragmentary. But a piece done out in nature can be many times more beautiful than one from a photograph. It holds within it both the feeling of “thought in paint”—your fleeting, half-thought impressions—and the joyful experience of being outside.
Biography
I'm a plein air landscape painter. To find natural places to paint, I travel to parks and other protected areas near my home north of Baltimore. It feels crucial to be somewhere my spirit feels buoyed up by the place, since it helps me tap into the inspiration and energy I need to work.
I paint in various media, including oil, watercolor, and pastel.
While most of my teaching experience has been as an English teacher, I’ve taught continuing ed courses in plein air oil painting through the Community College of Baltimore County. I’ve also taught pastel painting with a dab of Impressionism and Expressionism as part of an arts residency with the Baltimore City Schools. In addition, I frequently share some of my approach and techniques by posting videos of my painting process on various online platforms.
I have a BA in Modern Culture and Media from Brown, an MA in English from the University of Maryland, and an MA in Teaching from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland. I’ve studied painting at the Rhode Island School of Design and the Maryland Institute College of Art. My work is owned by numerous private collectors and has been featured at exhibits in Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and North Carolina.
Resume
Solo Exhibitions
Swimming in Eden (in-person exhibit), Adkins Arboretum, Ridgely, MD 2021
Swimming in Eden (virtual exhibit), Adkins Arboretum, Ridgely, MD 2020
Four Seasons, Adkins Arboretum, Ridgely, MD, 2016
Sundry Moods, Rosenberg Gallery, Goucher College, Towson, MD, 2013
Found Accident, Adkins Arboretum, Ridgely, MD, 2012
In Nature, William Ris Gallery, Stone Harbor, NJ, 2012
Spirit of Place, Adkins Arboretum, Ridgely, MD, 2008
Bendann Art Gallery, Lutherville, MD, 2008
New Works, Main Street Gallery, Annapolis, MD, 2007
Plein Air Landscapes, Adkins Arboretum, Ridgely, MD, 2005
Land and Sky, Rehoboth Art League, Rehoboth, MD, 2004
Hoffberger Gallery, Baltimore Hebrew Congregation, Baltimore, MD, 2004
The Ward Center for the Arts, St. Paul’s Schools, Brooklandville, MD, 2001–2002
Group Exhibitions
Intimate Encounters, CCACC Art Gallery, Gaithersburg, MD, 2023
By Invitation Only, RiverArts Gallery, Chestertown, MD, 2016
Art Outside, Baltimore, MD, 2014
Art Outside, Baltimore, MD, 2013
Shore Medical Center, Somers Point, NJ, 2013
Winter Group Show, Hardcastle Gallery, Centreville, DE, 2010
Anniversary Exhibition 149, Bendann Art Gallery, Lutherville, MD, 2008
Two Sisters, Arts at 510 Gallery, Harrisburg, PA, 2008
Winter Group Show, Bendann Art Gallery, Baltimore, MD, 2007
Adkins Arboretum 2004 Art Competition, Ridgely, MD, 2004
Maryland Federation of Art Winter Juried Exhibition, Annapolis, MD, 2004
Maryland Federation of Art All Hung Exhibition, Baltimore, MD, 2004
Pawtuxent Art League Winter Juried Exhibition, Laurel, MD, 2003
Small Works, York Arts Gallery, York, PA, 2003-2004
Adkins Arboretum 2003 Art Competition, Ridgely, MD, 2003
School 33 Open Studio Tour, Baltimore, MD, 2003
Winter Group Show, Carspecken-Scott Gallery, Wilmington, DE, 2003
Small Works, York Arts Gallery, York, PA, 2002-2003
Rites of Spring, 16 Patton, Asheville, NC, 2002
Small Works, York Arts Gallery, York, PA, 2001–2002
The City of Gaithersburg Visual Arts Exhibitions, Gaithersburg, MD, 2001
Artscape, Baltimore, MD, 2001
Mount Gretna Outdoor Art Show, Mount Gretna, PA, 2001
Residencies
Young Audiences Arts for Learning Arts Residency in the Baltimore City Public Schools, 2020
Awards and Honors
Featured Artist at Oak Creek Printworks, 2013
Honorable Mention, Maryland Federation of Art Winter Juried Exhibition, Annapolis, MD, 2004
Collections
St. Paul’s Schools, Brooklandville, MD
Numerous private collections
Art Instruction
Adjunct Instructor, Community College of Baltimore County, 2014
Education
Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD: coursework in oil painting
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI: coursework in drawing, watercolor, and oil
University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 1998: M.A. in English
College of Notre Dame of MD, Baltimore, MD, 1997: M.A. in Teaching
Brown University, Providence, RI, 1989: B.A. with honors in Modern Culture and Media
Bibliography
McCoy, Mary. "Plein Air Oil Paintings by Cockeysville Artist Julia Sutliff on View at Adkins Arboretum." Chestertown Spy, May 5, 2021.
McCoy, Mary. "Plein Air Oil Paintings by Julia Sutliff at Adkins Through September," Chestertown Spy, August 6, 2016.
McCoy, Mary. "Found Accident, Landscape Paintings by Julia Sutliff on View at Adkins Arboretum," Chestertown Spy, August 1, 2012.
McCoy, Mary. “Spirit of Place by Julia Sutliff on View at Adkins Arboretum,” Shore Update, October 3, 2008.
“Arboretum Exhibit Features Landscapes by Plein Air Painter,” The Bay Times, October 26, 2005.