Get to know the artist
who I am, why I create, and what I've done
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Who I am
(biography)
Hi, I'm Heather Clements
I am an artist creating and sharing beauty with meaning.
While growing up in the D.C. metro area of Northern Virginia, I was passionate about art from the very beginning. In 2007, I graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. After graduation was the perfect time to branch out to unfamiliar territories while I was still young and free. I ended up on the road with some friends to Panama City, Florida, a town I had never heard of.
Months after moving to the Panhandle, at just 22 years old, I took a giant leap and became the owner of the Gallery Above, an amazing art gallery that was the hub for the sub-culture of the area. Serving as a place for innovation, Gallery Above hosted monthly art exhibits, music events for local and nationally touring bands, film nights, swing dances, and so much more. “No one I know is doing more for local art and artists than Heather Clements and her Gallery Above.” – Michael Lister, News Herald.
After two years of gallery ownership, I became the Exhibitions Manager and Graphic Designer for the Visual Arts Center of Northwest Florida. There I curated many large and exciting exhibits, but in 2010 I decided to leave and concentrate on what I have always loved most: creating my own art.
I am now a full-time artist and art instructor, and I am still very involved in the local arts community. My art has exhibited in galleries and museums across the country, from California to Massachusetts. I have had the honor of procuring several solo exhibitions and winning many awards for my art in local and regional exhibits.
Always drawing inspiration from the human figure, my art mixes tight realistic portraiture with rich metaphors. Exploring mathematical and transcendent connections with flora and fauna, my work celebrates a symbiosis between humans and nature. I perpetually try to create beautiful and meaningful images.
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Why I create
(artist statement)
We live in a culture that has lost our deep connection with our home: the wilderness, the Earth. In my art, I visually explore the relationships between the people of our culture and the natural world. This in itself is a paradox, because humans are not separate from nature, but a part of nature. My work reflects a positive message of hope for a symbiotic interdependence between humans and our organic surroundings.
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What I've done
(Résumé)
Education
Maryland Institute College of Art [MICA], Baltimore, MD, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Cum Laude, Painting, May 2007
Solo Exhibitions
2021 Becoming Nature Again- Heather Clements Art Show, Taproom, Panama City, FL
2018 We Are Nature: Art by Heather Clements, Panama City Center for the Arts Main Gallery, FL
2015 Human Nature: Heather Clements, Gulf Coast State College Amelia Center Main Gallery, Panama City, FL
2013 Cut It Out: Cut Paper Art by Heather Clements, Bay County Public Library, Panama City, FL
2012 I Cut Paper: Art by Heather Clements, Studio b., Alys Beach, FL
2010 Heather Clements –A Selection of Works: Past, Present, but not Future, Gulf Coast Community College, Panama City, FL
2008 Octopus’s Garden: Art by Heather Clements, Tupelo Theater, Wewahitchka, FL
2007 I Draw People - The Art of Heather Clements, Gallery Above, Panama City, FL
Selected Group Exhibitions
2019 Winter Exhibit, Foster Gallery, Santa Rosa Beach, FL and Mirimar Beach, FL
2017 Grand Opening Exhibition, Fringe Gallery, Panama City, FL
2016 Maker's Mark: A Sketchbook Exhibit (3-woman show), Mosey's, Panama City, FL
2012/14/15/16 Top of the Class, Juried Exhibition, Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County, FL
2015 A Step Into Spring, Juried Exhibition, Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
2015 Musae, Juried Exhibition, Pensacola, FL
2014 A Cut Above, Highfield Hall and Garden, Falmouth, MA
2014 Nature Inspired, Guild of American Papercutters National Museum, Somerset, PA
2012/13 Northstar Annual Art Show, Panama City, FL
2012 Dia de los Muertos, ChimMaya Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2012 Heather Heather Heather (3-woman show), CityArts Cooperative, Panama City, FL
2011 BOLD, A&M Theater, Panama City, FL
2009 Opening Exhibition, Studio B, Alys Beach, FL
2007/08 Darkness, Gallery Above, Panama City, FL
2007 Commencement Exhibition, Fox Gallery, MICA, Baltimore, MD
2004 Selections from the Painting Department, Brown 3 Gallery, MICA, Baltimore, MD
2002/03 Something Hot, Gallery 222, Leesburg, VA
Selected Awards
2022 Best of Show 59th Bay Annual, Panama City Center for the Arts, FL
2017 + 2016 Best of Show, 53rd + 54th Bay Annual, Panama City Center for the Arts, FL
2017 + 2016 1st Place, Public Eye Soar International Projection Art Festival, Panama City, FL
2017 Best of Show, 58th Annual Beaux Arts Exhibition, Fort Walton Beach, FL
2016 1st Place, and People's Choice Award, Northwest Florida Art Battle
2015 + 2014 2nd Place, Public Eye Soar, Panama City, FL
2015 + 2014 + 2012 Merit Award, Top of the Class Juried Exhibit, Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County, FL
2014 1st Place, Figure It Juried Exhibit, Arts and Design Society of Fort Walton Beach, FL
2003-2007 Dean’s List, MICA, Baltimore, MD
2003-2007 Presidential Scholarship, MICA, Baltimore, MD
2003 1st Place, Excellence in the Arts, Loudoun Arts Council, Loudoun County, VA
1999 1st Place in Art, Terry and Sherry Malone Foundation, Loudoun County, VA
Selected Press
2021 "Clements to Debut New Watercolor Series at Taproom," Panama City News Herald
2018 "Clements' Work Declares 'We Are Nature," Panama City News Herald
2016 "Artist Heather Clements," Panama City Living Magazine
2015 "Artist's Touch: Embracing a Natural Humanity," PanamaCity.com print and online
2014 "Artist Interview," www.CLAWCLAW.com
2013 "Cut It Out: Artist's work connects with man, nature," PanamaCity.com print and online
2013 "The Business Side of Papercutting," First Cut Newsletter
2013 "Portrait of the people artist, Heather Clements," Panama City Life Magazine
2012 "Artist Opens Exhibit of Paper Cut Work," Walton Sun
2011 "A Cut Above The Rest: Artist Rocks Paper, Scissors," News Herald
2011 “Paper Garden Blooms at VAC,” Bay County Bullet
2010 Featured Artist, Beachcomber
2008 “Shaking Up the PC Arts Scene,” Cover Story, 5-page article, Coastal Homes and Lifestyles Magazine
2008 "Panama City Artist Brings Show to Tupelo Theater," (Cover Story) Gulf County Breeze
2008 Featured Artist (February- April,) Bay Arts Magazine (Cover and article)
2008 Artist of the month (January), EmeraldCoast.com
2007-2013 Cover Artist, Panama City Visitors Map
2007 Featured Artist (December,) Coastal Style MagazineSelected
Affiliations
2010 - present Member of CityArts Cooperative [PR + Marketing Manager, Gallery Manager, Director Recruitment]
2018 - 2021 Board of Directors, Bay Arts Alliance
2012 - present Member of Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County
2012 - present Member of Guild of American Papercutters, (Exhibitions committee 2021-)
Experience
Full Time Professional Artist 2010 - present:
Fine art, commissioned art
Art Instructor 2007 - present:
See current offering of classes and workshops
CityArts Cooperative, Panama City, FL 2010-present
Arts and Design Society, Fort Walton Beach, FL 2014-present
Panama City Center for the Arts, FL 2015-present
Gulf Coast State College, Panama City, FL 2015-present
Bayou Arts Center, Santa Rosa Beach, FL 2016-present
Studio b., Alys Beach, FL 2009-2012
Visual Arts Center, Panama City, FL 2009-2010
Michaels, Panama City, FL 2007
Visual Arts Center of Northwest Florida, Panama City, FL 2009 - 2010:
Exhibitions Manager and Graphic Designer
Gallery Above, Panama City, FL 2007 - 2009:
[The Gallery Above was a contemporary art gallery and venue space, serving as an arts hub for the sub-culture of the area]
Owner/Operator: monthly exhibit curation, graphic design, marketing, event organization, sales, etc.