Brenda Chrystie

Artist

Since early March 2020, I've been going on daily walks through my neighborhood and nearby woods, taking lots of photographs of things I find to be beautiful: the light through the trees, the overwhelming varieties of greens and blues. It has only been recently that I started painting from these images. 

Born and raised among engineers, this Southern California native defied generations of tradition by choosing Art. However, tinkering and problem solving are in my blood and inherent in my work and process. My work can be found in a number of personal collections and has been featured in few journals and publications. I have lived in the Pacific Northwest since 1999 and in Maple Valley Heights for the past twelve years.

CV

My work can be found in private collections and on the covers of few books and academic journals. If I'm not in the studio, snorkeling, or out enjoying the beautiful Pacific Northwest, you'll find me working on a mural project, raising support and awareness for the Maple Valley Creative Arts Council and fellow artists, making and selling upcycled glass art through my business From Flea To Market, or attempting - yet again - to make the perfect pie crust.

Exhibitions
2023

• Group Show, Maple Valley Creative Arts Center & Lake Wilderness Lodge, Maple Valley, Washington

2022

• ArtWalk Refresh, Group Show, Maple Valley, Washington
  
• GEMS, King County Fair, Enumclaw, Washington
• Hello Summer!, Juried Group Show, Gallery North, Edmonds, Washington
• Maple Valley Arts Fest Juried Show, Maple Valley, Washington

2021

• ​The Great Annual NW Art Exhibit, Parklane Gallery, Kirkland, Washington
• Maple Valley ArtWalk, Group Exhibit, Maple Valley, Washington
• Juried Exhibition, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington

2020

• Fourth Biennial Visual Impressions, Ryan James Fine Arts, Kirkland, Washington
• Frolic, Shadow Lake Nature Preserve, Maple Valley, Washington
• Maple Valley ArtWalk, Group Exhibit, Maple Valley, Washington
• Juried Exhibition, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington; Kathleen Frugé-Brown, Juror

2019

• Paint By Tunnels Mural, Cedar to Green Rivers Trail, Maple Valley, Washington
• Juried Exhibition, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington; Suzanne Gardner, Juror
• Maple Valley ArtWalk, Group Exhibit, Maple Valley, Washington
• Group Exhibition, Lake Wilderness Lodge, Maple Valley, Washington

2018

• Juried Exhibition, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington; Barbara Newton Benetti, Juror
• Maple Valley ArtWalk, Group Exhibit, Maple Valley, Washington
• Solo Exhibition, Maple Valley Creative Arts Council, Maple Valley, Washington​

2017

• Solo Exhibition, Maple Valley Creative Arts Council, Maple Valley, Washington
• Elegant Beauty: Five Millenia In The Making, Group Exhibition, Shadow Lake Nature Preserve, Maple Valley, Washington
• Maple Valley ArtWalk, Solo Exhibition, The Nutty Squirrel, Maple Valley, Washington
• Juried Exhibition, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington; Kathleen Moore, Juror
• Art Walk, Group Exhibition, Eagle River Interiors, Maple Valley, Washington​

2016

• ArtPrize Eight, Grand Rapids, Michigan​

Honors & Awards
2021

• Best of Show, The Great Annual NW Art Exhibit, Parklane Gallery, Kirkland, Washington; Elizabeth Pollie, Juror
• Juror's Choice Best of Show Award, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington; Cory Peeke, Juror

2020

• Juror's Choice Award, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington

2019

• CPRS, Inc. Purchase Prize, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington​

2018

• Juror's Choice Award, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington
• CPRS, Inc. Purchase Prize, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington

2017

• CPRS, Inc. Purchase Prize, Maple Valley Arts Fest, Maple Valley, Washington​

Public Art
2021-2022

• Paint By Tunnels, Project Manager, the Maple Valley Creative Arts Council's second community mural project on the Cedar To Green Rivers Trail in Maple Valley, Washington

2019

• Paint By Tunnels, Project Manager & Artist, a mural project on the Cedar To Green Rivers Trail in Maple Valley, Washington Project Lead and Artist

In the Media
2000

• "CoCA's mixed bag," Matthew Kangas, The Seattle Times.

1999

• "Banishing The Demons," The Argonaut, University of Idaho.

1997

• "Women Artists Featured At New Gallery," The Argonaut, University of Idaho.

Academic Appointments
2017-2019

• Art Instructor, STEAMboat Studio, Maple Valley, Washington

1999-2000

• Visiting Instructor, Cornish College Of The Arts, Seattle, Washington

1997-1999

• Instructor, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho

Education

• MFA, University of Idaho
• BFA, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago
• ​BA, California State Polytechnic University Pomona
• Additional Fine Art course work taken at the Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California and at L'Academia de Bella Arti, Florence, Italy

Affiliations

• Executive Director, Maple Valley Creative Arts Council (MVCAC)​ 
• Owner, From Flea To Market, Maple Valley, WA
• MVCAC Alternate, Public Arts Commission, City of Maple Valley
• Project Lead, Paint By Tunnels, Maple Valley Creative Arts Council (MVCAC)
• ​Signature Member, Puget Sound Group of Northwest Artists

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Published Artworks

Ennui

Oil on muslin. 36"w x 50"h. 1998.

Cover image. 
"Once the Shore." Paul Yoon. Cover illustration. Sarabande Books. 2009

Untitled

Oil and charcoal on paper. 12"w x 14"h. 2000.

Cover image. 
"British Sociology Seen From Without And Within." Edited By A.H. Halsey And W.G. Runciman. Cover illustration. British Academy Publications. 2005.

Untitled

Ink on paper. 6"w x 4"h. 2001.

Cover image. ​"The Time Machine And The Invisible Man." H.G. Wells. Barnes & Noble Classics, New York. 2005.

Portrait of Lacan as a Young Man

Oil on canvas. 72"w x 72"h. 1998.

Illustration. Nouveau, Moderne Ou Contemporaine?. Marc-Olivier Dupin, Directeur General. Illustration. "L’ile Joyeuse," Journal Of The National Orchestra Of France. Spring 2000.

Untitled

Oil on canvas. 24"w x 36"h. 1998.

The Virginia Quarterly Review, Volume 81 – Number 4, University Of Virginia Press – Paintings selected to illustrate the following short stories: "Peacekeeper," By Alan Heathcock; "Smother," By Joyce Carol Oates; "Ina Grove," By R.T. Smith. 2005.

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