Geary was born in Chicago, IL, but raised in Glenview, a northern suburb. An early encounter with surrealism – specifically Salvador Dali – and the pop art and op art movements of the 1960s laid the foundation for Geary’s lifelong obsession with art. As an adolescent, she would take the bus into the city to spend the day walking around The Art Institute of Chicago alone, seeking out those edgy genres that made such bold use of color, shape, and odd juxtapositions; such a foil to her daily life, and so defiant and wholly different than what she knew. Her solo meanderings through the museum lit something up in her, a yearning for something more – to see and create.
It was in her teen years that Geary enrolled in a summer life drawing program at the renowned school at that same museum where her love for art first sparked. After that study, she dabbled at painting throughout her twenties, while juggling a successful career, marriage, and raising kids. During those hectic years, art seemed far away, but the desire to seek it out and to create never left her. At mid-life, she had the opportunity to pick up her studies at The College of Du Page, where she took both painting and sculpture courses. This experience in turn led her to seek out private workshops with internationally known artists who introduced her to new mediums and techniques that would transform her work.
In the past decade, she has been working mainly in oil and cold wax, a medium that allows for the buildup of a rich history and patina through amassing layers of paint and excavation back through those layers. Luminosity and light have become trademarks of her work, which explores color and shape inspired by nature and God. Her work has been featured in numerous venues throughout the Midwest, as well as publications such as The Chicago Tribune, The Doings, and a book titled Cold Wax Medium: Techniques, Concepts, and Conversations by Rebecca Crowell and Jerry McLaughlin.
As a born-again Christian, Geary states: “More and more, as I draw closer to God, my work is becoming cosmic, evoking a transformation of spirit and mind. I often pray for guidance with the work, and more than anything, I want the end result to glorify Him. Many of the current works are inspired by scripture as well as poets such as William Blake and T.S. Eliot. They deal with issues of creation, the nature of time, and salvation.”
Geary maintains a daily painting practice in her home studio in Willow Springs, IL.