Emilie lee
is a classically trained oil painter whose work is inspired by her adventurous lifestyle and her background in traditional realist painting. From the deserts of southern Utah to the Japanese Alps to her back yard garden in Carpinteria, her plein-air and still life paintings are meditations on the peace she finds in nature.
After earning a degree in illustration at the Rhode Island School of Design in 2004, her work as a freelance writer and illustrator was published by outdoor adventure publications including “Alpinist Magazine”, Patagonia, and “Rock and Ice.” In 2008 Emilie moved to New York where she spent four years studying with renowned painter and educator, Jacob Collins. For three years after that she was a principal artist and instructor at the Grand Central Atelier. She is also a senior fellow at the Hudson River Fellowship. After eight years in NYC and a brief move back to her home state of Vermont, Emilie Lee is now based in Carpinteria, California. Since having her first baby in 2021 Emilie’s work has become more focused on local inspiration from the Carpinteria, Ojai, and Santa Barbara area.
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EDUCATION
2012 WATER STREET ATELIER, GRAND CENTRAL ACADEMY, New York, NY
Four year program in academic painting
2004 RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN, Providence, RI
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Illustration
TEACHING
2012-2016 Resident Artist and Instructor at the Grand Central Atelier, Long Island City, NY
2016-2017 Adjunct professor in the game art and animation department at Champlain College, Burlington, VT
2012 - Present Private classes and workshops in plein air painting, portraiture, figure, and still life painting, and visiting instructor at the Grand Central Atelier and Hudson River Fellowship.
FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
2021 American Art Collector Award of Excellence in the 110th annual CAC gold medal exhibition
2017 Accepted as a signature member of California Plein Air Painters
2015 First Place Cash Award at Mills Pond House Gallery, Saint James, NY
2015 Stobart Foundation Grant Recipient
2015 Telluride Mountainfilm Artist in Residence, Telluride, CO
2015 Jentel Foundation Residency, Banner, WY (forthcoming)
2015 Glen Arbor Arts Association Residency, Glen Arbor, MI (forthcoming)
2013 Rabbit Island Residency, Calumet, MI
2011 Salmagundi Club, Membership, New York, NY
2009 Grand Central Academy, Alfred Ross Scholarship, New York, NY
2009-2013 Hudson River Fellowship Residency, Hunter, NY & Jackson, NH
2004 Vermont Studio Center Residency, Angel Award Fellowship, Johnson, VT
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2017 Dacia Gallery, New York, NY
2015 Stronghouse Gallery, Telluride, CO
2008 The Lizard Lounge, Portland, OR
2007 Rostel Gallery, Dunsmuir, CA
2005 Edwards Art Gallery, Plymouth, NH
2004 Climb High, Shelburne, VT
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2023 Sullivan Goss, Santa Barbara, CA
“Wild Life” fundraiser for Lotusland Botanical Gardens
2021 Hillsdale Museum of California Art, Orange, CA
California Art Club’s 110th annual Gold Medal Exhibition
2019 Eleventh Street Arts, New York, NY
“Escape, Celebrating the Great Outdoors” curated by Emilie Lee
2018 California Art Club, Pasadena, CA
“Canyons to Coves”
2017 Old Main Gallery, Bozeman, MT
"Infinite Landscape" in collaboration with the American Prairie Reserve
2016 Eleventh Street Arts, New York, NY
"Wrap Me Up" Winter Small Works Show
2015 National Women's Art Association, New York, NY
"Summer Small Works Exhibition"
2015 Dacia Gallery, New York, NY
"Figurative Exhibition"
2015 Janet Kurnatowski Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
“Paperazzi”
2015 Salmagundi Club, New York, NY
“Landscapes”
2014 Eleventh Street Arts, New York, NY
“Inaugural Group Show”
2014 Edwards Art Gallery, Plymouth, NH
“Contemporary Traditions”
2013 DeVos Museum of Art, Marquette, MI
“Rabbit Island: Works and Research”
2013 Bennington Center for the Arts, Bennington, VT
“Small Works Show”
2012 The National Arts Club, New York, NY
“Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Arts Club Show”
2012 The Grand Central Academy, New York, NY
“Grand Central Academy Salon”
2012 Jackson Historical Society, Jackson, NH
“The Hudson River Fellowship”
2011 Mill Street Loft ARTS, Beacon, NY
“The Great Hudson River Exhibition”
2010 Bradford Washburn American Mountaineering Museum, Golden, CO
“Alpine Styles”
2009 The Racquet & Tennis Club, New York, NY
“Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America Benefit Auction”
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Bradford Washburn American Museum of Mountaineering, Golden, CO
Entre Prises USA, Bend, OR