Meerkat (39" x 29", acrylic on canvas) - This painting is a good example of how Mary liked to let the skeleton show through in her animal paintings.

"I know the Meerkat I did in conjunction with the Praying Mantis, because I was reading about the Bushmen, and the praying mantis is the creator and the meerkat is the devil, I guess you might say - the evil-doer.  I went down to the Children's Zoo, and I just ran into a meerkat at that point.  And so I made a lot of drawings.  He's very quick-moving... he's just in South Africa.  But I put the Light in, because I don't like to put any creature into total darkness.  He's facing the wrong way, though..."