Mary began photography at age 18 and gave it up when told she could not make a living in art. A labor and delivery nurse for 25 years (9 of which have been at St. Mary’s in Reno), Mary began photographing again 3 years ago with the encouragement of Diane Atherton, a fellow nurse and photographer.

Nursing involves interaction with us in the most intense and emotive times of human life. Labor and delivery nurses see the most tender and fragile periods of human existence.

Mary has developed a series of photographs involving her patients and co-workers. Her favorite photos are those where the subject is caught unaware they are being captured on film.

Having photos of the babies with the nurses and the mothers has brought together an expanded family for Mary. The photos delight visitors as they see nurses that brought them or their other children and grand children into the world.

The ongoing exhibit, “GREAT FAMILIES, GREAT BEGINNINGS BEGIN HERE” will be expanded to include more of the mother and baby areas at St. Mary’s.

Outside the hospital, Mary takes photos which reflect her eye for detail. Black and white photos of cracks on a treasured door from the home she was raised in, stark rushes against silver water, a cala lily intense and vivid in its simplicity are typical of Mary’s style of work.

Her experience in nursing may just have intensified her ability to see the details of animate and inanimate objects.