Working mainly in oil, Lacey Lewis is an award winning contemporary realist figurative artist who paints in a classical style. Whether or not one is versed in the elusive language of visual design, Lacey’s paintings communicate to the viewer as she purposefully chooses recognizable aspects of reality to recreate on the canvas. It is vital to Lacey that her art at a minimum expresses the beauty that she observes in her subject. Often that expression of beauty is an end in and of itself. Other times, it is used as a lure to entice the viewer to look a little longer so that a deeper meaning or narrative may be revealed to them.

Lacey prefers to focus on the human form for her subject matter, sensing that all of humanity, throughout time and space, regardless of race, gender or age, share common experiences and emotions. It is therefore natural for Lacey to identify with and communicate through images of people. She believes the human subject forces the viewer to engage the artwork and enables the artist to express an entire range of ideas from the subtle to the intense.

On the subject of identity, Lacey says, “Being a woman, I instinctively relate to images of women in art and also feel most able to express myself artistically by creating images of the female form.”

Delighted by the variety among humanity, Lacey Lewis also works in portraiture, regularly taking on private commissions.

“I am a people-watcher,” says Lacey. “Everywhere I go I am fascinated by the diversity among humans: different features, skin tones, personalities and lifestyles. I look at people and wonder who they are, what they are doing and where they are going. It's like some kind of puzzle that we all too infrequently find any answer to. We move along on our own paths, rarely noticing these fleeting moments when our life briefly overlaps that of another.”

Lacey approaches each portrait not only from the view of an artist, but also as someone who is captivated by people.

“I take it as an opportunity to learn about a person; their essence, where they've been, the image they project. I want to create a record of someone's whole being, not just their physical likeness, through a beautiful and well composed work of art.”

Born and raised in Syracuse, NY, Lacey Lewis’s interest in people was sparked early on. During her elementary years, she and her mother moved frequently throughout the urban areas of the city. These multiple moves inspired Lacey to revel in the diversity among her peers; and she desired to somehow encapsulate pieces of them that she could then keep for herself. Eventually she began to create portraits of her friends. When the limits of crayons and markers began to frustrate her, she sought other materials, sometimes turning to her mother’s make-up bag for painting supplies.

Throughout high school and college she continued to create portraits and figurative works, turning to more traditional media such as graphite, charcoal, and pastel. Periodically Lacey has tackled other subject matter, including still lives and landscapes, but she always returns to her first efforts.

“I remain unable to avert my eyes from the human form,“ admits Lacey. “Even if I approach a painting with great enthusiasm, without the human element, the experience and the art itself to me are wholly lacking.”

Lacey graduated summa cum laude from O.C.C. in Upstate New York with an Associates Degree in Art. She is a member of Phi Theta Kappa and the recipient of numerous awards and an art scholarship.

After college graduation (and another unacceptably snowy winter) Lacey moved away from her lifelong home of Syracuse to the Kansas City area.

“I then began a dialogue with myself about what my artistic direction was going to be. How was I going to define my style, where would I find inspiration, and what path would I take to further my education as an artist?”

As these answers began to work themselves out, Lacey found herself looking to the works of the masters for education, and to her enduring interest in people for inspiration. Over time, Lacey’s artistic style has presented itself as she has found a strong community of realists and living masters to look to for motivation and guidance.

Lacey currently resides in Kansas City with her husband and son. Here she continues to build upon her artistic knowledge, participates in local exhibitions, and gives public lectures and private lessons.