Bio:   Lisa Leskien BFA, B.ED, OCT 

 

Meet Lisa Leskien -  Artist on the Loose

​

Lisa Leskien is an artist on the loose.  Always exploring with her camera in hand, she enjoys collecting inspiration from the beautiful, rugged scenery of the Canadian Shield near her home North of Kingston.  Lisa creates stylized, representational oil paintings and lino & woodcut prints of scenes and objects from her life that radiate joy and energy using bold mark-making, thick "juicy" paint and a highly exaggerated use of colour. Lisa enjoys spreading that joy through her own artwork but also through teaching and coaching others in their artistic journeys at the Kingston School of Art where she teaches beginner, intermediate and landscape-focused painting classes, printmaking classes, crochet classes and arts workshops. Lisa is the 2024 Winner of the Quinte Plein Air Competition for her bold and bright acrylic painting called “Greetings from Jimmy the goat at Hagerman Farms”, she thoroughly enjoyed painting this scene, and loves capturing local colour and energy around her.

Lisa has a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from York University, and a Bachelor of Education Degree from Brock University.  She followed her dream to become an artist in 2021 after a 16-year career as an elementary school teacher. 
 

Artist Statement:

In my latest series of acrylic and oil paintings, I explore the tension between the intimate and the expansive, using two distinct yet interconnected subjects: the humble sock and the breathtaking landscapes of Frontenac Park in my hometown of Sydenham, Ontario.

The sock, often overlooked and mundane, serves as a symbol of comfort, personal history (the socks which inspired the series are hand knit by my daughter), and the quiet moments of everyday life. Through my sock paintings, I seek to elevate this simple object, examining its textures, folds, and colors as a reflection of the intimate experiences that define us. Each brushstroke is a meditation on the small, private details that make up our lives, allowing these familiar objects to take on new significance.

In contrast, my paintings of Frontenac Park invite the viewer into vast, expansive landscapes where nature's raw beauty unfolds. Through bold compositions and layered colors, I capture the energy of the park's untamed wilderness – its towering trees, still waters, and shifting light. These works are a celebration of nature’s inherent cycles and contrasts, where every detail, whether large or small, is in harmonious balance with the greater whole.

Together, these two subjects create a dialogue between personal introspection and the broader forces of nature, where the delicate texture of a sock can coexist with the grandeur of the natural world. This series is an exploration of how the small and the vast, the domestic and the wild, are inextricably linked, inviting viewers to consider the layers of beauty and meaning in both our personal lives and the world around us.

CV:

Exhibitions/Group Shows:

2026

• Her Square Foot Show – Online - March

• Pi Art Squared Show – Toronto, ON and Online - March

• GNAAA Juried Show, L & A Museum Gallery – Napanee, ON - February

• For the Love of Minis – Kingston, ON – February

​

2025

• Cambridge Winterfest Holiday Market – Cambridge, ON - December

• Red Barn Holiday Market – Bloomfield, ON- November

• Cline House Gallery Merry Mini’s Group Show – Cornwall, ON - November

• Art at the Sawmill – Verona, ON- October

• Kingston Square Foot Show – Kingston, ON - October

• Sweet 16 Art Show – Online – October

• Prince Edward County Studio Tour – Guest Artist – Picton, ON - September

• L and A Studio Tour – Guest Artist – Bath, ON - September

• Pop Square Foot Show – Online - August

• Women’s Art Festival – Kingston, ON - August

• Art in the Park – Oakville, ON - August

• Art at the Sawmill – Verona, ON - August

• Sit and Sip -Muskoka Chair Painting for Mc Donalds in Downtown Kingston -July

• Paint Peggy’s Cove – Peggy’s Cove, NS - July

• Affordable Artshow and Sale – The Hive, Bath, ON - June

• Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts – Cambridge ON - June

• Ottawa Landscape Competition, Ottawa ON - June

• Rideau Artist of the Year Competition, Smith Falls Heritage House- Smith Falls, ON  June

• PWD Big Ideas Show – Kultiq Gallery – Kitchener ON June

• Elora Plein Air Festival – Awarded Honourable Mention for “Davids street Bridge”-Elora, ON May

• Pelham Art Festival -Awarded Best in Theme “Joy” for “Sole Mates”– Fonthill, ON May

• Pi Art Squared Group Show – Toronto and Online, March

• Unchartered Territory – GNAA Juried Show – March -Awarded Honourable mention for my painting “Sole Mates”

• Pi Art Squared Show – Toronto, March

• Cline House Gallery Juried Exhibition – Cornwall, January-March

​

2024

• Studio 22 Featured Artist – Kingston, November/December

• Remember Group Show – Modern Fuel Gallery Kingston November/ December

• Loft Squarefoot Show – Loft Gallery, Thornbury, November/December

• Melt Give a Little bit Group show – Melt Gallery, Picton November/December

• Cline House Gallery Merry Mini’s Group Show – Cornwall, November/December

• Cambridge Winterfest Holiday Market – Cambridge, December

• Kingston Holiday Market – Kingston, November/December

• Kingston Square Foot Show – Group Show – Kingston, October

• Art in the Sawmill – Verona, October

• Sweet 16 group show – online – North America-wide, September

• Bath Art Festival - Bath, ON September

• L & A Studio Tour Artist Participant - Bath, ON September

• Pop Art Square foot Show - Online - North America-wide, August 

• Solo Show "Big Tree Energy" Kingston School of Art Window Gallery, Kingston, ON, July

• Napanee Hospital Group show, July-August 

• ArtFest Kingston, Kingston, ON, July 

• Quinte Plein Air Festival and show, Belleville, ON, June

• GNAA Juried Exhibition, Napanee, ON June

• Stoney Steps Art Festival, Newburgh, ON, June

• Hamilton Plein Air Festival, Hamilton, ON, June

• Elora Plein Air Festival, Elora, ON, May

• Pelham Art Festival, Pelham, ON, May

• Modern Fuel Night Market, Kingston, May

• Solo Show - Domino Theatre, Kingston, ON, March

• Pi Art Squared show, Online March

• Kingston School of Instructor Show, Window Gallery, Kingston, ON, March

• Cline House Gallery Juried Show, Cornwall, ON, January

• The Hive Studio and Gallery, Bath ON, Ongoing 2024

 

 

Solo Shows:

• 2026 Wild Things in Wood – Relief-Carved Paintings by Lisa Leskien, The Hive Studio Gallery, Bath ON  

• 2026 Bold Horizons & Cozy Threads: A Celebration of Colour -Niagara Pumphouse Gallery, Niagara on the Lake, ON  

• 2025-2026 Kingston General Hospital Gallery – Lisa Leskien Solo Show, Kingston ON

• 2025 Lookouts and Cozy Socks, Solo Show, Hive Art Gallery, Bath, ON

• 2024 Big Tree Energy, Solo Show, Window Art Gallery, Kingston School of Art Kingston Ontario

• 2023 Into the Great Wide Open, Solo Show, Lakeside Studio Gallery, Bath, ON

​

 

Awards/Recognition:

• 2025 – Elora Plein Air Festival – Honourable Mention for “View of the David’s Street Bridge” Acrylic Painting

• 2025 – Pelham Art Festival – Best in Theme of “Joy” for “Sole Mates” oil painting

• 2025 – Greater Napanee Area Artist Association Juried Show- Honourable Mention “Sole Mates” oil painting

• 2024 Quinte Arts Council Plein Air Competition - First Prize overall for the acrylic painting, "Greetings from Jimmy the Goat on Hagerman farms"

• 2024 Quinte Arts Council Plein Air Competition - Honourable Mention for the Linocut Print "Hagerman Farm"

• 2024 Hamilton Plein Air Festival - 3rd Prize overall for the Oil Painting "Clara's Climb"

• 2024 Elora Plein Air Festival - Honourable Mention for the acrylic painting "Gorgeous Elora"

• 2023 Quinte Arts Council Plein Air Competition - 3rd prize for the acrylic painting “Diva’s Hats” -Belleville, ON

​

Residencies:

• 2026 Killarney Provincial Park Artist in Residence

• 2023 Studio Artist Resident - Tett Centre for Creativity and Learning, Kingston, ON

​

Gallery Representation:

• 2025- Present  VAGA art Gallery, Gananoque ON

• 2024 - Present  The Hive Art Studio and Gallery, Bath ON

• 2023 Lakeside Studio Gallery, Bath, ON

 
Education:​

• 2004 Bachelor of Education, Brock University

• 2003 Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honours– Studio Art major, York University

 
Teaching:

• 2025-present – Teaching Artist – Agnes Etherington Gallery – Queens University – Linocut and Acrylic painting classes

• 2024-Present – Teaching Artist – Kingston Senior’s Centre – Abstract Art and impressionist painting courses

• 2022 -March 2025 – Teaching Artist – Kingston School of art – Introduction to Acrylic Painting, Intermediate Acrylic Painting, Oil painting for beginners, Comprehensive Crochet,  Lino cut Printmaking, Paint-tober daily painting practice, Intergenerational Art workshops

• 2021-2024- Elementary teacher, Kingston and Area

• 2005-2021 - Elementary teacher, Brantford ON

​

​