Mary Whitfield, a self-taught artist born in 1947 in Birmingham, Alabama, was greatly influenced by her grandmother's stories of slavery, oppression, and idyllic farm life. These narratives inspired her to visually represent them in her art. After moving to Long Island during her adolescence, Whitfield began her artistic journey using old house paint on plywood, later transitioning to watercolors on canvas. In her works, Whitfield strategically omits facial features, allowing the body language and gestures of her figures to narrate the historical and modern tribulations of African-Americans. Despite the lack of detail, her art is imbued with powerful expressions of human experience, especially around social justice issues.Her compelling artistry has gained significant recognition, including exhibitions at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore and a permanent spot in the Birmingham Museum of Art's collection. Whitfield also received a commission to illustrate a children's book about her husband's childhood and was featured in an article in Raw Vision magazine. Currently, Whitfield resides in Port Washington, near Long Island. Though she stopped creating in recent years, her compelling narratives continue to resonate within the art world.