Heather V McLeod is an oil painter exploring the Nantucket landscape alongside her conceptual figurative work. Born and raised in the greater New York area, Heather received her MFA from The New York Academy of Art and her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design. She has completed artist residencies in Nantucket, Rome and New York City including most recently The Kylemore Residency in Ireland. Her curriculum vitae includes a solo exhibition in New York City’s Trotter & Sholer Gallery as well as group exhibitions in NYC’s Sugarlift Gallery and The Flag Art Foundation. She has received the prestigious Fulbright Research Grant to study in Italy and two Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grants. In addition to her full-time painting practice, Heather is an adjunct faculty member at RISD and when she is not in Nantucket, her studio is located in Providence, Rhode Island.
There exists a space between our outward appearance and inner self. It is a space lined with objects that carry a record of our experiences and a glimpse into our past. My work explores this space.
Through non-traditional portraiture, I draw a line between physical appearance and identity. I use objects related to a person to develop their distinct iconography. These objects act to enhance the narrative of the figure we cannot see and welcome a range of interpretations. My art focuses on the gesture of the hand, on the vulnerable spot behind the ear and the less observed features that stand in for the whole.
I have always felt a need to hide a part of myself in any situation. Many of us have this tendency, whether consciously or unconsciously, and I enjoy navigating this territory. My work speaks to the individual struggles of fragility, femininity, and concealment while allowing the subject to remain hidden behind a light veil of humor. A figurine threatening to topple off of a chair speaks to the fragility of the feminine form. A bouquet of flowers past their prime contemplates a reflection of former youth. By concealing the face, one must find meaning in the symbolism of what we are permitted to see.
The elusiveness that results parallels the elusive nature of our own identity and, ultimately, reality.
