LEWISBURG, W.Va (WVDN)- Carnegie Hall is pleased to feature Lee Ann Blevins as the current Lobby Gallery artist. A native of Kenova, West Virginia, Blevins is an accomplished oil painter whose work spans expressive portraiture, wildlife, landscapes, and seascapes. Located in the Hamilton Auditorium, the exhibition showcases the depth of her artistic voice – rooted in decades of teaching, a lifelong connection to nature, and a passion for capturing the spirit of her subjects.
Blevins graduated from Marshall University in 1987 with a degree in art education and spent more than 30 years inspiring young artists in Cabell County Schools. She is an active member of Allied Artists of West Virginia, Tri‑State Arts Association, and Tamarack Artisans, and her work has been exhibited widely throughout the region, including the Huntington Museum of Art, Gallery Eleven, Grayson Gallery, Parkersburg Art Center, the Mathena Center, and Tamarack.
Known for her ability to bring portraits to life, Blevins works primarily in oils, creating images that reflect both technical skill and emotional resonance. Her wildlife paintings have appeared in the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources calendars, and her piece Blue Ribbon Winner was selected as the official poster of the 2023 West Virginia State Fair. Recent honors include acceptance into the Tri‑State Artists of WV 2024 Juried Exhibition, the 16th Annual Best of WV Open Juried Exhibition, and the Best of Show award for her painting Bella in the 2024 Allied Artists of WV Juried Exhibition.
Beyond her studio practice, Blevins embraces adventure and the natural world—kayaking, rappelling off the New River Gorge Bridge, snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, and climbing Mt. Fuji. She even carved the giant pumpkin at the famed Kenova Pumpkin House in 2022 and 2023. These experiences inform her artistic philosophy: to create work that is inviting, beautiful, and thought‑provoking. As she describes it, painting is “a way to create a place that is inviting and beautiful, thought provoking. That’s my goal as a painter.”
Blevins’ exhibition is free and open to the public, on view in Carnegie Hall’s Lobby Gallery through October 30, 2026, Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Carnegie Hall programs are presented with financial assistance through a grant from the West Virginia Department of Tourism and the National Endowment for the Arts, with approval from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts.
