Megan Read

Megan Elizabeth Read is an American figurative artist living and working in Charlottesville, Virginia. Largely self-taught, she now works almost exclusively in oil with pieces ranging from small still life to large scale paintings mostly focusing on the female form. Mae grew up in rural Virginia where she spent most of her time exploring the fields and farmland around her home or drawing for hours on end, both of which were clearly formative. After living in Los Angeles in her early 20’s she returned to Virginia and after many years working in the tech field she finally began making space for drawing and painting again and this has since become her life’s work.

Since Mae began focusing on painting in 2017 she has exhibited nationally in both group and solo shows including the Museum of Modern Art (MEAM) in Barcelona, Spain, the Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, Salmagundi Club in NYC, and Abend Gallery in Denver. Her work is held in a number of private collections, including the Bennett Collection of Women Realists, has been included in various publications, and won the first place award for Imaginative Realism at the 2019 International Art Renewal Center Salon.

* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 15^th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.