A new exhibit of watercolors by artist Mimi Adams Findlay opened on June 18, 2014, 12-4 p.m. at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum at 295 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT. The exhibit will run through October 31.

Mimi Adams Findlay, a New Canaan resident for over 40 years, studied watercolor painting first with Mac Squires in Wilton from 1961-65, and then with Edgar Whitney from 1965-1975. His challenging tutorials enabled her to paint in the “wet on wet” method, saturating both sides of the paper, front and back, and then completing the painting before the paper is completely dry. Always painting outdoors, on site, her subjects have been flowers in her gardens, her children, landscapes and seascapes, especially in Maine and Nantucket, and occasionally scenes in Paris. She won first prize at the Darien Art Show and at the Washington Square NYC Art Show in the 1970s. In 1970 she won first prize for watercolor painting at the New Canaan Outdoor Art Show.

An art history major at Smith College, she had also studied in Providence, RI, as a teenager with Gino Conti, artist member of the Providence Art Club. Since 1966, she has been a professional watercolorist and has been listed in Who’s Who of American Women.

Since 1975, she had directed her professional efforts to the study of the history of interior design and historic preservation at the Columbia University School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. She was appointed to the Connecticut Historic Preservation Board and served from 1974 to 1984.

Subsequently Mimi became a member of the Board of Trustees of the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, The Victorian Society in America and Connecticut Preservation Action. She served on the New Canaan Planning and Zoning Commission for nine years from 1979-1988, and founded the New Canaan Preservation Alliance Inc. seven years ago.

From 1980 to 2005 she owned Mimi Findlay Antiques/Design, exhibiting in Antiques Shows in New York City, offering design services to private clients for the restoration of historic interiors as well as providing the appropriate antiques and period furnishings. She serves on the Vetting Committee of the prestigious annual Winter Antiques Show in the Armory.

The Museum’s 2014 cultural and educational programs are made possible in part by generous funding from LMMM’s Founding Patrons, the Estate of Cynthia Clark Brown; The Museum’s Distinguished Benefactors, Klaff’s, The Xerox Foundation, and The Maurice Goodman Foundation;  LMMM Sustainers: Spinnaker Real Estate Partners.

The Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum is a National Historic Landmark. Tours are offered Wednesdays through Sundays, at noon, 1 p.m., 2 p.m., and 3 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $6 for children. Children under 8 are admitted free. For more information, visit www.lockwoodmathewsmansion.com, e-mail [email protected], or call 203-838-9799.