BIO

Abstract Artist, Dee McBrien-Lee

East coast born and raised, I was exposed to art very early in life. My mother was a landscape painter and passed her love of art on to me. With her guidance, I created my very first landscape in oils at 10 years old. I began as an art major in college but finished with a degree in Psychology. Soon after graduating I moved west and made my career in the hospitality industry. It was not until the early 2000’s while living in Park City, UT that an opportunity presented itself allowing me to get back into creating. At that time I was painting primarily horses and landscapes with acrylics and experienced some success with what I considered to be contemporary Western art.

In 2007 I moved to Bend, OR. Things really took off for me artistically in 2010 with my participation in the opening of the Red Chair Gallery. I began painting full time along with running the Gallery with my partners. My version of Western art eventually lost its appeal for me and as a firm believer that a true artist is constantly evolving, I knew it was time for a dramatic shift in my work. In 2014 I started taking classes in abstract and mixed media painting and in doing so found what I had been searching for.

My artistic journey is a living, breathing thing and I find that taking a course either online or in person every few years really ignites my creativity and keeps me evolving.

I love the freedom and expressiveness that painting abstractly affords me. I can begin with just color and shape or blocks of collage and texture and let the medium guide me toward a finished piece. Or I can create with intention, all along letting mishaps and surprises steer me in unexpected directions. The true beauty of art is that there are no mistakes, there may be frustrations and sometimes you just create bad art but the joy is in the creating. The reward is when someone else is touched or moved by your creation. Art is to inspire, ask questions, make a statement or simply a gift of joy. I look forward to participating for a long time to come.