Leslie Pierce
Leslie Pierce is a contemporary artist, known for art that focuses on coding systems, documentation, fragmentation, and technology. Her ongoing series, Code Defied, evolved from painting contrasted areas of flattened and modeled forms of the human figure. One day while printing reference images, her printer ran out of
ink and printed bands of color and fragmented parts of an image. This was an a-ha moment. The traditional way of painting is changed as Pierce employs vertical lines to generate value, form, space, time, and place. Form and value seem to be ironed out in space, while simultaneously standing up, suspended in time.
Born in New York, Leslie spent part of her childhood behind the scenes of the Museum of Natural History where her father worked as a scientist. Mesmerized by the T-Rex bones and dinosaur exhibits and the life-sized dioramas, these early experiences influenced her adventurous spirit and formed her love for art and artifacts. Pierce relocated to Austin, Texas to attend The University of Texas at Austin. She holds two art degrees; a B.F. A. from U.T. Austin and an associate degree in Video Game Art from A.C.C.
While living in Austin, Texas she organized and curated group art exhibits, taught Painting and Drawing for the Austin Museum of Art’s Art School, and founded and hosted a popular all-male model Life Drawing and Painting group for Austin Visual Arts Association in which she was a member.
Ms. Pierce relocated from Austin to San Diego, California in 2014 and opened a studio gallery in Arts District Liberty Station. She continues to work on the Code Defied series, adding new paintings and working on a multi media addition. She is a current member of the Oceanside Museum of Art’s Artist Alliance and is selling her work internationally.
Leslie Pierce is honored to have one of her pieces in the permanent collection of The Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin and has been awarded several Special Projects grants in Austin and San Diego to expand her work.
