[3] Unable to make a living from her sculpting, she went back to college and got a master's degree in art history.

Determined to escape what she felt was a "cultural desert", she enlisted in the Women's Army Corps for two years.

While there, she visited museums, learned about oriental art and met Japanese artists, calling the time a "fabulous experience".

Mayhall stayed at the Aldrich Museum for six years[3] before leaving to work at Storm King.

Her last studio space was with the Loft Artists Association,[8] at the former Yale and Towne factory in the South End of Stamford.