"When I paint, I work in bursts of energy and inspiration. I could never be an artist that maps out exactly what they're going to do...it's just not my style.

I have to just let it flow...if I make a wrong decision with color or composition, well, I can always fix it. This is what works best for me as a painter..."

---Margaret Petterson

Apparently, this has worked very well indeed for Margaret Petterson, Lowcountry Painter and resident Charleston artist. Her intuitive approach to art has brought her national and international recognition for her oil paintings, watercolors and mixed-media monotypes. The artist has appeared on national television, her paintings have been displayed in embassies in both Jordan and Australia and locally she is proud to be an active leader in Charleston's growing art community.

Originally from Loris, South Carolina, Margaret moved to Charleston at the age of eight. Growing up in the lowcountry meant being surrounded by the beauty of the marshes, oak-shaded roads, and historic architecture of the Holy City. "I've always been an artistic person," she says, "but it wasn't until after our two children were born that I began taking it more seriously. I took a watercolor class at the Gibbes Studio of Art, and things just took off from there..."

Working first in watercolors, Margaret Petterson gained local recognition for her dramatic renditions of downtown cityscapes, lowcountry marshlands, and the colorful flora of the area. Says Margaret, "Nature is bursting with color, and one of my goals is to share that with others..."

About ten years ago Margaret decided to replace watercolors with oils as her preferred painting medium. Clients delight in seeing the artist develop her style:

"Typically we have a rule not to buy more than one work per artist, but Margaret's paintings have evolved so much that we now have something in every medium she's worked in: watercolor, monotype and oils...Beside the fact that we love the large scale of a lot of her work, her use of color is so striking and she continues to develop that as the years go by..." --Dennis and Mae Tavernetti, Traveler's Rest, SC

An artist whose training includes studies at Charleston Southern University, multiple workshops with nationally renowned artists, and printmaking with Patrick Aubert in Florence, Italy, Margaret has received many accolades.  These include the first place award in the Springfest ‘92 exhibit in Charlotte, N.C. and inclusion in the competitive Winterpark Arts Festival, and the Festival of the Masters at Disney in Florida. She was selected as Artist of the Year for the 5th Annual Film Festival Worldfest-Charleston.  “Margaret Petterson’s vibrant renderings of the Lowcountry scene shows a masterful integration of light and form revealing an artist who continually challenges herself to express her delightful visions,” said Hunter Todd, Worldfest-Charleston’s director.
            Margaret's work has also appeared in several publications including the a book titled, Watercolor for the Serious Beginner (Watson-Guptill Publications, N.Y.: 1997), the cover of Charleston Place Magazine, and the Cooper River Bridge Run poster, as well as feature articles in American Art Collector, Art Galleries and Artists of the South, and Southern Living magazines.Two of her works were also selected by the U.S. Ambassador to Australia to be shown in Canberra and Ammon, Jordan.
            Corporate collections include the Federal Reserve Bank, Charlotte, N.C.; NationsBank, Charleston, S.C. and Charlotte, N.C.; BellSouth, Charleston, S.C.; Springs Mills, Inc., Fort Mill, S.C.; Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, S.C.; Rapid Granulator, Inc., Goose Creek, S.C., Fiberweb, Greenville, S.C.; ADT Security Offices, Rochester, N.Y. and Omaha, N.E. Her paintings can be found in private collections in Europe, the Caribbean, Canada, Australia, and the United States.

Today, Margaret can usually be found painting in her oil studio, which is just behind the gallery, or working in her new print studio in the Petterson's country home.

To learn more about Margaret, please
contact the gallery with questions and
we will be happy to assist you.