wide diptych The Ring, Godwin said, "I most often begin to paint by envisioning form and space in nature and then interpret my ideas and feelings into planes of color on the canvas. When I recognize an emerging form, I respond intuitively by evolving complementary sub-forms in colors and applications which feel supportive and foster development. In studying color and its behavior, I have learned to trust my intuition." Another of her paintings is titled Ode to Martha Graham. Early in her career Godwin employed a strong, aggressive style in order to silence the male critics who dismissed women's contributions to the art world at that time. Over the course of her career her color palette evolved, first softening and later becoming bright again. In the 1990s, Godwin began incorporating subtle assemblage to her canvases. Of this later direction she said, "I think it came out of needing to add something to the surfaces of my paintings...I don't want them to jump out." In a statement made for "Celebration of Women in the Arts," at Northern Michigan University in 1978, Godwin said ..."The act of painting is for me, as a woman, an act of freedom, and a realization that images generated by the female experience can be a powerful and creative expression for all humanity. My paintings are personal statements - extensions of myself. I take a truth, an intimate emotion, a question, an answer – and paint it. It is natural for me to mediate upon reality rather than on the romantic, and yet my work often results in a mixture of both" Awards and honors 1989 Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA Professional Achievement Alumni Award from the School of the Arts, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 2002 Career achievement award from Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, VA Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, VA Personal life Her family home in Suffolk was called "Whitehall" and her ancestry goes back to the first settlers in the Virginia Colony. Godwin's mother was Judith Brewer Godwin who was associated with the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities and a one-time president of the Garden Club of Virginia. Godwin's father was Frank Whitney Godwin, a dentist and decorated veteran of World War I who later became a national vice commander of the American Legion, and was additionally an amateur architect. Judith