Artists Mara (b. 1951) and Roy (1934-2013) Superior worked independently but also as collaborators. Roy was an accomplished painter, sculptor, and woodworker while Mara is a ceramic artist. Their work is well exhibited in prestigious institutions here and abroad, as well as in private collections.

Mara’s work reflects decorative art history’s iconic styles. She utilizes the familiar American folk patterns and shapes but reinvents the object to tell a modern story. Her career started early in life in New York City. She attended the High School of Art and Design, Her studied continued at the Pratt Institute, Hartford Art School, and she earned a BFA in painting from the University of Connecticut. She later received her MAT in ceramics from University of Massachusetts in Amherst. She later received a fellowship from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the National Endowments for the Arts. Mara’s work can be seen at the Renwick Museum, Albany Institute of History and Art, Crocker Art Museum, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Racine Art Museum.

Considering himself more as a creator, Roy did not want to be confined to one genre of art. His focus was to be a fine craftsman and to create beautiful objects, rather than being considered just a woodworker or just a painter. Like Mara, he also attended the Pratt Institute, earning his BFA, followed by a short study abroad at the Institution Allende in San Miguel De Allende in Mexico. He completed his MFA from Yale University in 1962.  His works are currently at the Renwick Gallery in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Racine Art Museum, and the Peabody Essex Museum.

In 2018 and 2019, KFI acquired a collection of 72 pieces of Mara and Roy’s artwork. After preservation work by KFI staff and conservation by Meghan Mackey and Jack Larimore, the pieces were gifted to 17 institutions including Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Peabody Essex Museum, Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Crocker Art Museum (CA), Racine Art Museum (WI) and Fuller Craft Museum (MA).