Artist Bio/Artist Statement

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ARTIST STATEMENT/BIO

n. lee ball artist statement

I create contemporary oil paintings celebrating overlooked, mundane people, places, and things in the changing environment they occupy. Inspiration for much of my work comes from images obtained through my travels by car, train, bike, airplane, and even comfortable shoes.  I am particularly fond of unique architecture. Occasionally, I dig into my family’s archive of black and white photos of little-known relatives.  I crop and frame my images to detach the viewer from reality and to create a new narrative.  I start conversations on canvas, incorporating the natural patterns, textures, and space of an actual place into a pleasing composition of decaying Americana.  Currently, I am exploring a variety of materials, images, and experiences with works comparing man-made objects and ever-changing landscapes.

n. lee ball bio

Lee is an oil painter born in Raleigh, North Carolina.  She grew up influenced by both the red clay around her home in the rural countryside and the opportunities of the Capitol city where her parents worked.  After high school, Lee studied Architecture at North Carolina State University School of Design and received a Bachelor of Environmental Design in Architecture. She also earned a BFA from Meredith College in Raleigh, NC, concentrating in Painting and Sculpture, and staying a little longer to earn a teaching certificate. She taught secondary Visual Art for twelve years, ten of which were at Athens Drive High School.  After relocating to Franklin, Massachusetts,  Lee currently enjoys teaching students at Danforth Art School and Hopkinton Center for the Arts.

Lee’s work has been juried into regional and national shows including the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh Fine Art Society, Raleigh Visual Art Exchange, Morini Gallery, Lexington Artwalk, and Cambridge Art Association. Much of her work is inspired by her interest in theatre, museums, and travel.   Although she considers Massachusetts and the Northeast her new forever home, she visits Johnston County in North Carolina often.