‘Cul-De-Sac Girls’ is a digital piece of art reflecting on my memories of growing up lower middle class at my dad’s house. Many young girls lived in this Cul-De-Sac, and we’d spend hours running throughout the street playing. Because of that, sometimes we’d take towels and pretend to sunbathe in the road, of course listening out for any oncoming cars. Despite the many hard times I had growing up with my father, these girls were always there to keep my mind off the bad things and to make sure I had a fun childhood.
For this piece I used an actual photo of the cul-de-sac from Google maps as reference, and layered elements around to create a warm and fun atmosphere to the work. The children in the middle are not exact renditions of the girls I grew up with, but blended mixes of them summarized into two girls, with a younger me in the middle.
Mary Mathews is an animator and illustrator who enjoys capturing nostalgic memories and emotions in her art. Mary has been drawing since she was only three years old and has submitted work to multiple competitions and exhibits to see her work grow along with her during that time.