Lelia Davis Exhibit

Artist Statement:

“Using bold color, energetic brushstrokes and palette knife, I paint the magnificent landscapes of my home state of Colorado and beyond. Combining art with my background in wellness, biology and interest in environmental conservation, the focus of my work is to depict endangered land and its fragility, as well as our shared role in maintaining a healthy environment for all of its inhabitants.

As I discover more about the ecosystems we rely upon so fiercely in Colorado, I strive to bring more awareness on an even more intimate level. Whether touring protected land with conservation groups or hiking solo, I photograph the waterways that are essential to each habitat on a micro and macroscopic level. This exhibit includes multiple series of landscapes in which I’ve taken areas of each and painted them abstractly as they become more focused. My deptiction of these more intimate, easily missed areas are a metaphor for how we easily take their importance for granted.

I graduated from Trinity University in 1998 where I studied Art and Biology. In 2000, I earned my Bachelors in Nursing at the University of Texas. I continued to pursue my vocation as an artist, and was later accepted into the Academy of Art University in San Francisco to earn my Masters in Fine Art. You can find me painting in my studio majority of my time, using art to promote mental health with students through CASA and NAMI, and finding artistic inspiration as I hike and photograph the beautiful scenery just beyond my doorstep.

“As much as we want to be seen and known, it is the giving of attention that keeps us awake. For giving attention opens us to love. And accepting that deep things wait like seed between us is believing in the world.” -Mark Nepo