Artist spotlight: Cathy McMurray

Recently we discovered artist, Cathy McMurray who‘s loved to draw at an early age. In the second grade, her teacher enrolled her in an accelerated art program. so for the remaining primary and middle school years, she was regularly bused to another school to take classes in drawing, weaving, ceramics and even claymation. This experience in the public school system truly shaped her as a young artist, and it kindled her passion to teach art. 

Cathy opened a store in Portland that carried beautiful things with beautiful stories, now she works on her own art.  In the ‘90s, it wasn’t practical to just be an artist, especially one with a college degree. After wavering between teaching and advertising, Cathy landed in public education. The artist spent the next 10 years teaching high school art in Eugene, Oregon. Cathy eventually left teaching to pursue another dream of hers — opening a retail store. So, in 2006, she moved back to Portland to open a shop that carried handmade goods by independent designers and artists.

It was a great little shop, but it couldn’t survive the economic downturn. They closed their doors in 2009, and that was the point she decided to pursue her own art. Cathy gains inspiration from different cultural backgrounds, including her Asian heritage. The artist loved to capture landscapes because she’s surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery in the country.