MFA offers our artist members the opportunity to exhibit at local restaurants around Annapolis. Currently, we work with Paul’s Homewood Café, a restaurant blending Chesapeake staples with traditional Mediterranean cuisine, and 49 West Coffeehouse, Winebar & Gallery, a place that brings art, music, and community together with great food and drink in an ambiance inspired by the traditional European coffeehouse.

Now exhibiting at 49 West through March 28, 2023:

Megan Whitfield and Amy Holt Cline

Megan Whitfield

Artist Bio

Megan Whitfield (b. 1985) is a self-taught representational painter living in Annapolis, Maryland. Her award-winning work has been published in Plein Air Magazine and on permanent display at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. In addition to producing highly sought-after fine art, Megan has worked as a cover artist for publishing houses over the last 13 years.

Megan has developed a love for coastal scenes, wetlands, and maritime skies, which has been inspired by having lived surrounded by oceans, waterways and seascapes. While she grew up along the banks of the Susquehanna River in Central Pennsylvania, as the spouse of a Naval Officer, she has lived and traveled throughout the Mid-Atlantic Seaboard for the last 15 years. Her paintings reflect a deep understanding of maritime environments and portray emotionally driven scenes of the shorelines of the rivers, harbors, and bays, which serve as the arterial waterways that give life to America.

Since she began exhibiting her art in 2021, Megan has been accepted into numerous juried shows and won several awards in international fine art competitions. She is a member of the American Society of Marine Artists, the Maryland Federation of Art, and the National Oil and Acrylic Painters’ Society.

Artist Statement

As the wife of a Naval Officer, my lifestyle has been transient. Moving every two years has allowed me the opportunity to uncover what makes the environment I have been placed in unique and try to tell its story. This has been translated into my work through deep study of the landscapes and backgrounds I have been surrounded by.

This body of work aims to communicate the beauty and richness of the Mid-Atlantic region through carefully thought-out focal points, illuminating values and compelling textures. As a Tonalist painter, the perspective of my work is dependent upon memory, emotional connection to the landscape, and an emphasis on atmosphere and mood.

Amy Holt Cline

Artist Bio

Hi, I am Amy Holt Cline and I have been studying nature and making art since 1982. The artwork featured here is inspired by sea floor mapping data collected by scientists who study the ocean from a ship, a computer lab, or collect data by satellite. Art and science are deeply interconnected and can be seen throughout these art pieces. Growing up on the shores of the pacific before becoming a marine biology educator, and then on to other academic endeavors, I have been fascinated by colorful bathymetric charts that show different types of underwater data. These paintings are made up of mixed media acrylic paint and strive to express bright, rich paint colors through layers of texture. There is harmony when you see something beautiful and it makes you feel alive and motivated in some way. I feel this way while making paintings and think about trying to express a language I haven’t yet learned how to speak in words. I am inspired by the water, nature and the people that ask deep and meaningful questions about all of it. This is a window into my work which is varied, rich and inspired by travel and new horizons. I hope you enjoy it!

Artist Statement

Amy Holt Cline (b. 1973, California) explores concepts connected to people and the environment. The show featured here is inspired by sea floor mapping data and the ways that scientists sometimes conduct their sonar work offshore. As a California native who has lived on the east coast for more than 20 years, Amy seeks new experiences, conversations, and methods to try to answer the big questions of life. She is most curious about the intersection between science and art and wrote her master’s thesis on the fact that these subjects are deeply intertwined. Amy uses a variety of materials to create new textures through layers of color, paper and paint. Originally trained as a marine science educator, Amy has taught in several different oceans and is still influenced by the ocean, nature, and a bright color palette. Although she has been making art her whole life, Amy formally studied art at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia completing a M.A. in Art Education. She also took classes at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and completed an apprenticeship with Pennsylvania based mixed media artist, James Dupree. She has exhibited her work in Annapolis, MD, Philadelphia, PA, Brooklyn, NY, and in online art magazines.

Megan and Amy’s work is on display at 49 West located at 49 West St, Annapolis, MD 21401. Open daily.