Bio and Artist Statement

Lynn Sisler is an American artist working in New England. Born in 1969, she received her MFA at Maine College of Art and Design in 2021 and completed a BFA in painting with a minor in Art History from Northern Illinois University in 1991. She was an assistant professor in the Visual Arts Department at Springfield College but now resides in Portland, Maine, and is represented by the Elizabeth Moss Gallery.

Sisler works in oil paint and pencil over a colorful ground, which reflects the underlying emotion of the painting. Recent works borrow color from Werner’s Nomenclature, a collection of 19th century swatches found in nature. Interested in the idea of collective memory, Sisler often turns to her own childhood to talk about animals in various contexts. Captivated by the interconnectedness of ecology, her figures overlap, revealing new spaces. Sisler’s interpreted narratives feature animals, plants, and humans, often blended as one entity, in a magical, folkloric construct within spiritual ecologies.

CV

Representation at Elizabeth Moss Galleries, Falmouth and Portland, ME

https://www.elizabethmossgalleries.com/artists/153-lynn-sisler/works/

Education

2021 Maine College of Art and Design, M.F.A. Interdisciplinary Studies, Portland, ME

2018-19 Art of Education University, 30+ graduate-level credits in Art Assessment, Choice-Based Learning, Instructional Strategies, and Studio Drawing, Osage, IA

2018 Rhode Island School of Design, Children’s Book Illustration, Providence, RI

2006 Walden University, MS-Ed in Reading and Literacy, Minneapolis, MN

2001 Northern Illinois University, BS-Ed in Elementary Education, DeKalb, IL

1991 Northern Illinois University, B.F.A. in Painting. Minor, Art History, DeKalb, IL

Solo and Two-Person Exhibitions

2024

Beautiful Remnants. Elizabeth Moss Gallery, Falmouth, ME

2017

Ocean Life-Force; An Artist’s Exploration of Halcyon Days. Elusie Gallery, Easthampton, MA

Migration Stories, revisited. Art Stop, New England Public Radio, Springfield, MA

2016

Migration Stories and Other Curious Lore. ECA+ Gallery, Easthampton, MA

2013

The Book of Saints. The Cube Gallery, Atlanta, GA
2011

Portraits. Farm to Loft Pop-Up Gallery Decatur, GA

Group Exhibitions

2024

A Different Perspective. Arundel Farm Gallery, Arundel, ME

Dog Days of Summer: Animal Companions in Art. Arundel Farm Gallery, Arundel, ME

2023

Littles. Elizabeth Moss Gallery, Falmouth, ME

Sourced: Origins of Inspiration. Springfield College Fine Arts Gallery, Springfield, MA

As Luck Would Have It. 13 Forest Gallery, Arlington, MA

Collect. Maine College of Art and Design. ICA Gallery, Portland, ME

2022

Part-time Faculty Show. Zuckerman Museum, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA

Winter Works, Bromfield Gallery, Boston, MA

2021

MFA Thesis Exhibition. ICA Gallery, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

Urgent Unity, Unprecedented Healing, You and Me Gallery, Greenfield, MA

2020

Post-Pause. Online, Easthampton, MA

Project Project: Be Seen Initiative. Congress Square Park, Portland, ME

Love Your Beautiful Neighbor. Elusie Gallery, Easthampton, MA

2019

Northampton Arts Council Biennial. Forbes Library, Northampton, MA

2018

If Water Could Speak. Hope and Feathers Gallery, Amherst, MA

2017

Changing Shape. MAEA Member’s Exhibition. Student Union Gallery, University of

Massachusetts, Amherst, MA

While Art is Still Legal; Art in the Age of Trump. Elusie Gallery, Easthampton, MA

2016

IS 183 Art School of the Berkshires Faculty Show. Williamstown, MA
2015

7th Annual Small Works Show. ECA+ Gallery, Easthampton, MA

Open Studios. One Cottage Street Studios, Easthampton, MA

Grand Opening. Greenfield Gallery, Greenfield, MA
A Celebration of Birds. MAC 650 Gallery, Middletown, CT

Passages. Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR

Telephone. Satellite Collective, Online Exhibition, Brooklyn, NY

2013

Animals. Light, Space, and Time Online Gallery
2012

Recent Paintings; Kelly Enzor and Lynn Sisler. Atlanta, GA

1996

Local Artists. Atlanta Contemporary Arts Center, Atlanta, GA

Honors/Awards/Grants

2021 Above and Beyond Grant, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

2020 Hildreth Family MFA Endowed Scholar, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

2020 Wild Roof Journal, Issue 2, May 2020

2019-20 Albert K. Murray Fine Art Educational Fund. Six-time recipient. Adamsville, OH

2020 Cover Art; Coyote Song. Silkworm 13: The Annual Review of the Florence Poet’s Society. Florence, MA

2013 Animals Art Exhibition, Special Merit Award. www.lightspacetime.com

Public Installations

2023 Squirrel Shrine. Tiny Art for All Gallery, Northampton, MA

Residencies and Workshops

2024 Hale Master of Fine Art; Artist in Residence. Artist Association of Nantucket, Massachusetts

Throwing on the Wheel, Stonington Community Center, Stonington, Connecticut

2023 La Meridiana; The Shape of the Earthceramic workshop with Eddie Curtis, Certaldo, Tuscany, Italy

2021 Artist Association of Nantucket; Artist in Residence, Nantucket Island, Massachusetts

2011 Cook in France; Artist in Residence, St. Amand de Coly, France

Teaching and Artistic Experiences

2023-Present Menagerie Fine Art Studio. Fine art prints, paintings, and ceramics online shop

2024-Present Cambridge Artist Association, Online Courses, Cambridge, MA

2022-2024 Adjunct Faculty Visual Arts, Springfield College, Springfield, MA

2021-2024 Adjunct Faculty Graduate Level online platform, Art of Education University, Osage, IA

2021-2022 Adjunct Faculty Visual Arts, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA

2020 Teaching Assistant, Online platform. Maine College of Art, Portland, ME (Creative Non-Fiction)

2016-20 Art Teacher, Mosier Elementary School, South Hadley, MA

2016 Art Instructor, IS 183 Art School of the Berkshires, Stockbridge, MA

2014-15 Summer Camp Art Director and Instructor, Venetian Swim Club, Decatur, GA

Professional Organizations and Certificates

Artist-in-Business certificate. Arts Extension Service through the Arts Entrepreneurship Initiative. Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, MA

College Art Association (CAA). New York, NY
Easthampton City Arts (ECA+). Easthampton, MA
Foundations in Art: Theory and Education (FATE). Columbus, OH Massachusetts Art Education Association (MAEA). Boston, MA
National Art Education Association (NAEA). Alexandria, VA
Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). Los Angeles, CA