Born in San Bernardino and raised on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, Mary-Austin found inspiration in the California landscape at an early age. The Otis Art Institute took her inland to Los Angeles to the Echo Park district in Los Angeles where she has been a resident for 31 years. 
After purchasing a Mojave Desert cabin in 2001, Klein returned to painting landscape. Her collectors, including the American artist Wayne Thiebaud, appreciate her small-scaled and highly detailed paintings. She takes numerous trips throughout the year for artistic inspiration and returns to her studio to produce new works. 
Mary-Austin Klein’s work has been exhibited at the Riverside Museum of Art, Oceanside Museum of Art, Bakersfield Museum of Art, and Santa Paula Art Museum. Country-Alt band I See Hawks in L.A.