The paintings of award-winning writer, artist and native Oregonian LeslieAnn Butler appear in private, public and corporate collections throughout the country and in Europe, including former president George Bush and entertainer Michael Jackson.  In addition, her paintings have been featured in solo and group exhibitions at galleries and cultural centers, including the Portland Art Museum, the Museum of Art in Grants Pass and the Art Museum of Coos Bay, Oregon; the Lawrence Galleries in Portland, Gleneden/Salishan and Sheridan, Oregon; the KD Moore Gallery in Evergreen, Colorado, and the National Pen & Brush Society in New York City.

LeslieAnn has been involved in art, writing and other creative endeavors since childhood. She graduated from the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in Theater Arts and a minor in Fine Arts. LeslieAnn has written and published poetry, articles and two books.  Her first book, The Dream Road, won the National Visionary Award in 1998. The second book, If Your Hair Falls Out, Keep Dancing! will be released in the summer of 2008.

Just out of college, she worked as a model in San Francisco, then began an career as a copywriter at one of the largest advertising agencies in the world, Ketchum, McCleod and Grove. It was at this point in time that she was diagnosed with Alopecia Areata.

LeslieAnn traveled throughout the United States and Europe, living on the East Coast for several years, but headed home to Oregon to complete her career in advertising as a creative director for a Portland agency, winning local, regional and national awards for her work.

In the mid 80’s, she began writing on her own and becoming more involved in her art. “I can’t help but abandon myself to the passion and joy of painting.  Each one of my series is connected at the deepest level by color, energy, excitement and freedom. This is how I live each day, and this is how I paint.”

LeslieAnn is active in the community and serves on the Board of Trustees of the Oregon Humane Society. She is a member of many arts organizations including the National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society, National Association of Painters, the Regional Arts and Culture Council, Portland Art Museum and Portland Institute of Contemporary Arts. She sets aside a percentage of her art income to benefit charities. Educated at Lewis & Clark College, the University of Oregon and Pacific Northwest College of Art, she has studied with two internationally acclaimed artists.