Pirkle Jones Fund Selects Marin’s Lela Shields as the Ninth Recipient of the Visual Artist Support Program Grant

Jul 12, 2019

Novato (July 10, 2019) The Pirkle Jones Fund (PJF), established to honor Marin photographer Pirkle Jones who died in 2009, has named Lela Shields, a resident of Fairfax, as the ninth recipient of a grant from its Visual Artist Support Program. The program supports promising emerging and mid-career artists living in Marin County, California. The artist will receive a grant of $25,000.

The PJF Visual Artist Support Program grant aims to recognize, encourage, and nurture artistic imagination and drive, commitment to the creative process, aesthetic standards, and artistic potential.

“I have been struggling for the past two years with trying to paint from a home studio," said Shields. "It has been nearly impossible for me to focus and accomplish what I usually am able to in a separate studio space."

"Within an hour of being told I was to receive the Pirkle Jones Grant, I had found my dream West Marin studio," she continued. "It is the quiet, introspective space I have longed for my entire career. A space that I am certain will allow me to explore new depths within both myself and my work."

"Everything I paint is nature inspired, and my new studio space is surrounded by nature. I never would have sought out or found this studio without the generous gift of this grant. I am so incredibly grateful for the support and am determined to make the most out of this opportunity. I have no doubt this grant will have positive repercussions on my work for the rest of my life."
Shields, whose work focuses on large-scale paintings and drawings, strives to reveal the fragility of life, utilizing delicate line work and detailing in an ultra-fine balance between human, animal and spiritual realms.

Her work has been exhibited in numerous solo shows throughout the Bay Area and in group exhibitions in California, Colorado, New York, London, Sydney, Auckland, Tokyo, Paris and Zurich.

For more information or images, contact Lani Alo at the Marin Community Foundation, at either 415.464.2531 or lalo@marincf.org