Lori McNee | Ketchum, Idaho USA
“I would like to paint the way a bird sings”
For nearly 25 years, Lori McNee has lived with her family in the beautiful mountains of Central Idaho. A native of California and raised in the South West, Lori cultivated her interest in Native American art and wildlife during her childhood. She would spend many fruitless hours trying to catch the birds that flocked to her yard. Finally, she decided to capture the birds on paper with a pencil. Lori has been drawing and painting birds and animals ever since.
Although she studied art in college at San Diego State University, Lori considers herself self-taught. Over the years she has apprenticed with master artists, Robert Bateman, John Seerey-Lester, Carl Brenders, Vivi Crandall, Guy Coheleach, Scott Christensen and Jo Anna Arnett to name a few. Lori has illustrated for Ducks Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, the Wolf Education Research Center, various trout and duck stamps and books.
Lori’s broad spectrum of work includes still life, wildlife, landscape and plein air painting. Her still life arrangements are a juxtaposition of nature-made and man-made objects and most always include birds. These elegant and metaphorical paintings echo the delicate balance between nature and man with hopes of a harmonious coexistence. Lori’s landscape paintings range from outdoor plein air to studio works reminiscent of the 19th century Barbizon and Luminist painters.
Lori’s paintings have been featured in Western Art Collector, South West Art Magazine, Wildlife Art Magazine, Art Talk Magazine, American Art Collector, Sun Valley Magazine, Sun Valley Guide, Plum TV, and newspapers. Lori is a member and exhibits with Oil Painters of America in National Exhibitions. Lori’s paintings can be seen each year at the American Art in Miniature Show at the Gilcrease Museum. Her sought after works are sold is galleries throughout the United States. Besides painting, Lori is an active owner/blogger of FineArtTips.com where she gives valuable art tips and advice to fellow artists. WeFollow.com ranks Lori as the “#2 Most Influential Artist” on Twitter.
