Mary Ellen Sisulak
Biographical Info Mary Ellen Sisulak has lived and worked in Door County, WI since 1974. The intersection of art and nature describes her representational painting. Sisulak is a graduate of the University of WI-Milwaukee (BFA-Painting – 1974) She studied with renown painters, Tom Uttech, John Colt and Joseph Friebert. In 2018 a trip to Santa Fe, NM for seminars with Ellen Koment and Fransico Benitez reacquainted her with encaustics. She developed a signature method of painting on leather incorporating stones into mixed media work. The two mediums give endless opportunities to express the flora and fauna of the world that surrounds her on the edge of the Mink River Preserve. After moving to Door County, Sisulak did freelance illustration and graphic artwork. She developed a fine leather craft design company and traveled to countless juried art venues for 35 years. From 1986 to the present she established and continues to run Turtle Ridge Gallery-Boutique. From 1992 -1997 a second venue was added in Egg Harbor WI. Turtle Island Gallery featured fine craft and curated monthly exhibits. In 2017 Mary Ellen made the move back to full time painting. An additional space was opened at Turtle Ridge to show her mixed media paintings, encaustics and etchings. She has had a personal and deep commitment to her community. Over 20 years ago she established Ellison Bay Arts, a local art business group. She helped rebrand her business community through Door County North. In 2020 with others she created two community murals to beautify a vacant space. Mary Ellen Sisulak is represented by Edgewood Orchard Gallery, Fish Creek, Turtle Ridge Gallery-Boutique, Ellison Bay and The Encaustic Art Museum, Santa Fe.
Level Northeast Wisconsin Chapter
Membership Type Member