ROBERT COLGAN
Columbus native Stacy Leeman wanted to be an artist since she was 5 years old. Though her academic and artistic journey took her to New York for several years, she eventually returned to Columbus, and today, her oil paintings are displayed in galleries and art shows throughout the city.
“I feel like I go through stretches where, if I’m working really, really steadily, I learn all kinds of new things,” Leeman says. “And I feel like artists really love to sort of talk about their materials and stuff. Every once in a while.”
Leeman finds inspiration for her work through text, particularly Jewish texts such as the Talmud and the Five Books of Moses. Working with these texts allows her to find meaning in literature that is very complex and difficult to understand.
Her most recent series is inspired by the Virginia Wolfe essay A Room of One’s Own. Since the end of her undergraduate career, Leeman has mostly been interested in abstract work, with a particular focus on scale and texture.
“So space works really differently,” Leeman says. “You work with different materials, and sometimes, your brushes and supplies that you’re working with have to change because of the changing scale.”
Leeman primarily paints on canvas, wood and Dura-Lar – a polyester film – all of which hold paint differently and offer a unique visual and textural experience. She has also recently begun experimenting with oil pastels after seeing the beautiful work one of her students created using the medium.
Her students aren’t the only people who have influenced Leeman over the years. While in graduate school at Rutgers University, she became part of a close-knit community of fellow artists. And even before graduate school, Leeman found a sense of belonging among a group of artists with whom she shared a studio in Manhattan.
“I have this sort of group of artists that I can lean on, and a fellow colleague at Otterbein that I’m really close friends with, so when I have questions, I reach out to them,” Leeman says. “They’re sort of my go-to people. Or when I find something new, I send a text or an email saying, ‘Hey, have you ever used this color or this material?’ And it’s really kind of fun.”
Leeman has found that having a sense of community is very important to her, and to artists in general.
“It’s a very solitary experience,” Leeman says. “You spend hours and hours and hours by yourself, and I’m not going to say that I dislike that, but it can be lonely.”
During the pandemic, Leeman was able to spend a lot of time in her studio working, free of everyday distractions. She was even able to start a new series of paintings that later made appearances in her show with the Dublin Arts Council.
In addition to her artistic ventures, Leeman also added a new art studio onto her house. Her previous studio was located in her attic, and it did not lend itself well to the larger works she was creating.
Leeman primarily showcases her art in Brandt-Roberts Galleries, with a presence in four other galleries throughout the country.
Leeman recently presented her work in Stacy Leeman: A Room of One’s Own, organized by the Dublin Arts Council. The sheer size of the space presented Leeman with the opportunity to present 47 of her paintings across three rooms.
The Columbus art community in particular has been very supportive and kind, often lending itself to many new opportunities for artists.
“Artists have opportunities to make art, to sell art. And they have opportunities to experiment,” Leeman says. “You’re not dealing with New York City galleries, so I feel like artists have a little more artistic freedom.”
Claire McLean is an editorial assistant with CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemedia.com.
