M.D. Davis became a full-time artist at the age of 24. She and her husband, Wayne, have worked in their 2,500-square-foot studio since 1980.
What does one do with a background in art history?
"Go for variety," says M.D. Davis. "I started down many different career paths, some quite lucrative. Eventually, though, each venture became stale. When we founded our restoration company, I found contentment and never looked back."
The marriage of archaeology and rock art
As a professional conservator, M.D. Davis has mastered an impressive array of art media—from Mayan ceramics to T'ang cloisonné; from 16th century Chinese lacquer work to pre-WWII Lugers. M.D.'s long-term interest in archaeology meshes beautifully with her mission of rescuing imperiled artworks. A chance discovery of a little-known group of Texas pictographs transformed her abiding concern into a serious involvement in recording and preserving rock art in Texas.
"I never get tired of rock art," says M.D. "There's such variety in colors, placements, and styles of painting. Each method, each image is evocative in its own way. I marvel at the way prehistoric artists overlay successive works. They were very respectful of previous efforts. Often, later artists incorporated existing symbols into their own narratives."
What makes your artwork so unique?
"My work is painstakingly copied from actual sites—from shelters, overhangs, caves, and outcroppings throughout the Southwest. My sole concessions are scale and certain binders.
"It's also fun to speculate on the meanings of the paintings. I have to be careful with definitions. I offer only opinions, and there are many of those. Since these expressions and chronicles are from long-vanished cultures, I can only cross reference with what I know of modern cultures.
"These pictographs have had a tremendous power over me for a long time now. I am surprised there aren't more people looking for rock art. Some of the most breathtaking galleries in Texas are seen only by cows!"