A Life in Art

Leslie Adams "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl" Charcoal 2012

Cleveland, Ohio-based artist Leslie Adams (b.1963) has this to say of her retroactive self-portrait:  “I love my little green easel. It is the first easel my parents gave me and represents their belief in my dream. When I discovered it in the attic of my family home, it wasn’t perfect like I remembered. It was old and worn. That made me proud…proud that it had gotten so much use. I vividly remember how I felt sitting behind the easel - a real artist - with my box of 64 and my Strathmore Alexis Drawing tablets at my feet."

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl received the William F. Draper Grand Prize at the Portrait Society of America’s Portrait Conference in 2013. This is the first time a drawing received the Grand Prize and only the second time the highest award was given to a woman artist. 

Leslie Adams "The Art of Life" Charcoal 97x60 inches 2012

This massive drawing "portrays the Artist in her studio surrounded by images of her family and records of their history, newspaper clippings chronicling her career, catalogs, and monographs on her most influential teachers, mentors, and artists." (from the artist's website)

Adams maintains a working studio in Cleveland, Ohio but flies all over for portrait commissions and speaking engagements. Her multiply prize-winning work has been shown in museums and galleries all over the country. Her website can be seen here: http://www.leslieadams.com/