IG: When did you feel that you were an artist? MBM: That’s a hard question. I think when my self-portrait was hung in the Metropolitan Museum that totally did it. It countered all the bad (or non-existent) gallery experiences. This one sense of accomplishment, which continued as the painting hung for eight months, was very healing. Also, and maybe more importantly, because I myself felt that my painting held its own against the other paintings. Many of the artists included in this exhibition were painters that I had always loved.... [http://www.asllinea.org/mary-beth-mckenzie-interview/]