About Stephanie Deshpande 

Stephanie Deshpande holds a BFA Painting degree from the University of Massachusetts, and an MFA degree from The New York Academy of Art. She received Ellen Battell Stoeckel Fellowship to attend Yale Summer School of Music and Art, and has been recognized numerous times for her work by the Portrait Society of America, RayMar Art, etc.

Currently, she teaches classes and workshops in both Teaching Studios of Art in Long Island and the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey. Stephanie is a representational painter living in northern New Jersey, and is best known for her psychological portraits and narrative paintings. Her works combine a love of realism with personal allegories and create unearth hidden emotions that capture the quiet drama of the world around her.

She has showcased her paintings in several noticeable exhibitions such as Painting Today for International Women’s Day 2019 in Barcelona, Spain, and American Women Artists for the Tuscon Art Museum in Tuscon Arizona.  


New Brunswick Art Salon 2020 – Oil and Mixed Media: Encounters

New Brunswick Art Salon 2020 – All Media: “Configured Personas”

Artist Personal Website: www.stephaniedeshpande.com


Artist Statement

I am inspired to paint regularly, as one would feel compelled to write in a journal. I capture and recreate moments in my life; however, the result is entirely new. I usually paint people and objects around me; as a result, I convey themes by the actions and emotions of the subject, rather than the subject matter itself.

My work has been described as having a “something-going-on quality” to it. Through subtle metaphors, I suggest a deeper narrative. The analogies in my paintings are not intended to be obvious, but rather have personal significance that is open to interpretation, much like a poem.

In addition to the psychological component of my work, the life-like portraits by John Singer Sargent have influenced me. I strive to capture the beauty and realism of portraiture because I feel an immediate connection to the characters depicted. I usually paint the figure in an interior setting and use chiaroscuro because I am intrigued by how light reveals forms emerging from the darkness. Stylistically, my loose brush strokes lend themselves well to the buttery texture of oil paint. By melding personal allegories with a traditional academic approach, I aspire to have my paintings make an emotional impact and depict the subtle dramas in life. 


Exhibitions 

MUSEUM SHOWS

  • Painting Today – International Women’s Day, 2019 MEAM, Barcelona, Spain
  • American Women Artists’ Exhibition: Perspectives of the American Experience, January 2018 Rockwell Museum, Corning, NY
  • Women Painting Women: In Earnest, 2017 J. Wayne Stark Galleries at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
  • American Women Artists: Under a Vast Sky, October 2017 Tucson Desert Art Museum, Tucson, AZ
  • Women Painting Women: In Earnest, August 2017 Clarksville-Montgomery County Museum, Clarksville, TN

SOLO AND TWO-PERSON SHOWS

  • Turning Away, 2019 Feature Gallery, Summit, NJ
  • Looking Inward, 2004 Belenky Gallery, New York City, NY
  • Solo Exhibition, 1997 Rao’s, Amherst, MA
  • The UnspokenConfiguration,1997 Visual and Performing Arts Space, UMass

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

  • Creator and Muse, May 2020 33 Contemporary Gallery, Chicago, IL
  • Bliss: Mandarin Oriental Exhibition, NYAA, December 2019 Mandarin Oriental, Miami, FL. Curated by Helena Christensen and Brooke Shield
  • Eastern Regional Exhibition of Traditional Oils, OPA, October 2019 Beverly McNeil Gallery, Birmingham, AL
  • Allied Artists of America 2019 Annual Exhibition, September 2019 Salmagundi Club, NY
  • In Bloom: Online Floral Exhibition, April 2019 Abend Gallery, Denver, CO
  • Adorn Me, Publication & Online Exclusive Exhibition Curated by Carol Hodes
  • 28th Annual Holiday Miniatures Show, November 2018 Abend Gallery, Denver, CO
  • Women Painting Women, Men Painting Men: Voices with Vision, October 2018 Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
  • Eastern Regional Exhibition of Traditional Oils, OPA, October 2018 McBride Gallery, Annapolis, MD
  • 2018 Annual Exhibition, Allied Artists of America, September 2018Salmagundi Club, New York, NY
  • VIVA LA FEMME! Exhibition, April 2018 L’Atelier Berkshires Gallery, Great Barrington, MA
  • Women Painting Women: In Earnest, September 2017 J. Wayne Stark Galleries, College Station, Tx
  • Take Home a Nude, NYAA, October 2017 Sotheby’s, NYC
  • SCNY Non-Members’ Exhibitions, July 2017 Salmagundi Club, New York City, NY
  • Summer Exhibition, July 2017 Haynes Galleries, Thomaston, ME
  • National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils, OPA, May 2017Eisele Gallery, Cincinnati, Ohio
  • Sight Unseen, November, February 2017 Abend Gallery, Denver, CO
  • Root to Bloom, November 2016 Principle Gallery, Alexandria, VA
  • Allied Artists of America 2016, September 2016 Annual Exhibition, Salmagundi Club, NY
  • Eastern Regional Exhibition of Traditional Oils, OPA, October 2016 Eisele Gallery, Cincinnati, Ohio
  • Reinventing Ourselves from Another Point, August 2016 Zhou B Art Center, Chicago, IL
  • Tribute to the Emanuel Nine – A Portrait Project, July 2016 Principle Gallery Charleston, SC
  • 2016 National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils, OPA, May 2016 Southwest Gallery, Dallas, TX
  • 119th Annual Exhibition, Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, November 2016 National Arts Club, NY
  • 31st Anniversary Exhibition, November 2016 Waterhouse Gallery, Santa Barbara, CA
  • Women Painting Women, October 2016 Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery, Sag Harbor, NY
  • American Artists and the Allure of the East, September 2016 Schomburg Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
  • Women Painting Women: The Tales We Tell Together, October 2015 Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery, Sag Harbor, NY
  • Women Painting Women: 5th Anniversary & International Juried Show, September 2014 Principle Gallery Charleston, Charleston, SC

AWARDS

  • 2019  Silver Medal, OPA, Beverly McNeil Gallery, Birmingham, AL
  • 2019  Finalist, 2018/2019 ARC International Salon, Art Renewal Center
  • 2018  Grand Prize, Associate Online Exhibition, Allied Artists of America, NY
  • 2018  Certificate of Excellence, 2018 International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America
  • 2018  Tuition Scholarship, Portrait Society of America
  • 2017  Signature Status for 2018, Portrait Society of America
  • 2017  Honorable Mention, Southwest Art magazine’s 2017 Artistic Excellence competition
  • 2017  Certificate of Merit for Oil, 39th Annual SCNY Exhibition for Non-Members, Salmagundi Club, NY 2016
  • Finalist, 2015/2016 ARC International Salon, Art Renewal Center
  • 2016  Finalist, Still Life/Interior category in Artist’s Magazine’s 33rd Annual Art Competition
  • 2016  Finalist, Portrait/Figure category in Artist’s Magazine’s 33rd Annual Art Competition
  • 2016  Honorable Mention, oil painting in the 2015 Artist’s Magazine All-Media Competition
  • 2016  Semifinalist, BP Portrait Award, National Portrait Gallery, London, UK
  • 2015  7th Honorable Mention for Still Life Category, Member’s Only Competition, PSoA
  • 2015  Allied Artists of America Silver Medal of Honor, Allied Artists of America
  • 2015  Award winner, 8th Annual Fine Art Competition, RayMar Art
  • 2015  Finalist, 2014/2015 ARC International Salon, Art Renewal Center
  • 2014  1st Merit, Non-Commissioned Portrait, Member’s Only Competition, PSoA
  • 2014  American Artist Professional League Award, CLWAC 118th Annual Open Exhibition
  • 2014  John Young-Hunter Memorial Award for Painting, Allied Artists of America
  • 2014  Honorable Mention, OPA Summer 2014 Online Showcase, Oil Painters of America
  • 2014  Honorable Mention, Artist’s Magazine’s 30th Annual Art Competition
  • 2014  June Best of Show, RayMar Art Competition
  • 2014  ARC Staff Prize, 2013/2014 ARC International Salon, Art Renewal Center
  • 2014  Finalist, 2013/2014 ARC International Salon, Art Renewal Center
  • 2014  Honorable Mention, 2014 International Portrait Portfolio Competition, PSoA
  • 2013  3rd Honorable Mention for Outside the Box, Member’s Only Competition, PSoA
  • 2012  Honorable Mention for painting in Artist’s Magazine’s 29th Annual Art Competition
  • 2012  Best in Show, Images 2012: The Juried Exhibition of the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, Robeson Gallery, PA
  • 2011  Finalist, ACOPAL’s Contemporary American, and Chinese Realism Competition
  • 1999  Richild von Holtzbrinck Award, The National Arts Club, NY
  • 1999  First Place, 10th Annual Juried Painting Exhibition, Synchronicity Space, NY
  • 1997  Chancellor’s Talent Award, UMass Amherst
  • 1996  Ellen Battell Stoeckel Fellowship, Yale Summer School of Music and Art
  • 1996  William F. Field Alumni Scholars Award, UMass Amherst

COLLECTIONS

  • Cynthia Graham Hurd St. Andrews Library, Charleston, SC
  • New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, CT
  • Rev. Anthony Thompson, Charleston, SC (private)

PUBLICATIONS 

  • 40 Contemporary Great Masters of Portrait Painting – April 2019
  • Worldwide Ink – July 2018
  • International Artist: Honoring Dedication to their Craft – June 2018
  • Southwest Art – December 2017
  • ArteLibre: Anuario “Arte y Libertad XII” – November 2017
  • American Arts Quarterly: Fall 2017 – November 2017
  • Fine Art Connoisseur: Fine Art Today – October 2017
  • Fine Art Connoisseur – September/October 2017
  • PoetsArtists: The Family Edition, Issue 88 – September 2017
  • PoetsArtists: Sight Unseen, Issue 81 – February 2017
  • 21st Century Figurative Art: The Resurrection of Art by Jan Esmann – November 2016
  • The Artist’s Magazine – October 2016
  • PoetsArtists: Reinventing Ourselves from Another Point of View, Issue 75 – August 2016
  • Southwest Art – May 2016
  • Fine Art Connoisseur: Fine Art Today – October 2015
  • Fine Art Connoisseur: Fine Art Today – September 2015
  • The Artist’s Magazine – December 2014
  • Artists on Art – Issue 11, Summer 2014 Artist’s Magazine – December 2012
  • PoetsArtists: Devotion, Issue 68 – November 2015
  • Centre Daily Times – July 2012
  • The New York Optimist – June 2012

EDUCATION

The New York Academy of Art, Graduate School of Figurative Art; NYC, NYM.F.A. Painting, Cum Laude, 1999

University of Massachusetts; Amherst, MAB.F.A Painting

Yale’s Summer Art Program; Norfolk, CT. Summer 1996

Studio Training under Paul Ingbretson and Meg Mercier: Franmingham, MA January 1996


Artist Interview