About Leah

     More than anything, I simply offer good intentions to the world through my work. As a painter, I take the tactile visual experiences that excite me (often textures, color combinations, animal figures...) and I use them to dream up enticing ideas that I've never seen before (lately, off the wall ideas that make me laugh out loud). 
          I have not had much formal training in painting, but that is not to say I did this on my own. I graduated Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa with a major in Philosophy and a major in Fine Art with an emphasis in sculpture and ceramics from Coe College in 2005.  I learned a bit of color theory with Peter Thompson, drawing with Priscilla Steele, and took many sculpture and ceramic classes with the art department chair, John Beckleman who taught me a great deal about the elements and principles of design for 3-d artwork. He spent a lot of time talking open-mindedly with me about art and philosophy. To round out the end of my BA, I wrote an introspective senior thesis called “Truth and Artifact,” that details my time in college and my journey to understand art at the time. I shared the Marvin Cone Prize for outstanding senior body of work for my sculpture and drawings. I spent a semester in New York and apprenticed to Sculptors Romelo Del Dio and Lee Tribe. While there, I went to many museums and performances and frequently drew at the Art Student's League and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Most recently and informally, I've received helpful guidance from my friend and master portrait painter Duffy Sheridan in Florence, Arizona.
       My original artwork is collected by people with a sense of humor and appreciation for fine details all across the United States and prints and books have been sent to collectors throughout the world.
         In 2018, I designed a 200 x 5 foot steel and stained glass fence that surrounds the Art Museum in Casa Grande, Arizona.  The building is on the national register of historic places.  The fence and I were featured on the Casa Grande episode of Arizona Highways TV in 2020. I made a little documentary tribute to the volunteers who made the project possible, and you can view it here: Art Museum Restoration Short - YouTube
          In 2022, I put together a book of my paintings entitled "There Will Be Nonsense" The book contains 30 full color paintings.  Each painting is paired with a fun answerless question.  It doubles as a conversation starting coffee table book or a special children's picture book.  The book won the 2023 Best Independent Book Award (BIBA) for Illustration. BIBA is an international competition for independently published books. Get a copy here: Books – Artifact Fine Art (artifactfa.com)
           In addition to painting, I make silly little animated videos that feature my paintings and post them on social media. I also post works in progress. You can find my videos and posts on instagram: @artifactfineart, facebook: @artifactfineart and youtube: