Maura was born in La Jolla, California and raised in north San Diego County, the middle child of a large family. At an early age, Maura became enthralled with watercolors and oils. Self-taught, she sold her first painting at the age of 17!
  While studying Native American history in college she became intrigued by the photographs of Edward S. Curtis, the pioneering chronicler of our vanishing native tribes. These classes began a lifelong passion for all things Native American.
   Her early work included drawings and portraits of local San Diego County Indians. While teaching art at the Pala Indian School, she created a series of portraits of local tribesman and their children that marked her debut as a professional artist.
  Over the next several years, Maura developed a reputation as a talented Native American portraitist. Her work has been shown in galleries from Old Town, San Diego up the coast to Laguna Beach and throughout all of central Arkansas.

  Maura has always taken a special interest in the beauty found in nature. Growing up among the orange and avocado groves of San Diego has given Maura the inspiration to paint gorgeous fruit on large canvases.

  Travels to Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska, Ireland Canada and the eastern seaboard, imbued this artist with a lifelong interest in painting landscapes in the plein air tradition of California artists at the turn of the century.

  To add to the mix, Maura enjoys portrait art, especially children. She has also been known, on occasion, to paint especially handsome dogs!