Heather McKey is a traditional acrylic painter, blending her lifelong love of birds with unexpected and striking features.

These fanciful birds are embellished with a variety of shells and botanicals intermingling with feathers and patterns found in nature. Strange and familiar at the same time, the birds are playful and exotic as they strike a pose in their world of dreamy landscapes and seascapes, peering back at their viewers with large, expressive eyes.

Each of McKey’s paintings begin on a raw wood panel, the individual grain pattern inspiring the design composition of the plants, water, sky, and land. Her admiration of Martin Johnson Heade and James Audubon continue to influence her vision through every painting, as well as her deep love of The Hudson River School painters.

Although no formal degree, Heather McKey was professionally trained from an early age through longstanding art mentorships. Her childhood was spent under the instruction of artist Judy Nachazel and her adult study followed under the mentorship of Christopher Polentz. Both have had a profound impact on her imagination, technique, and artistic pursuits.

Every fantasy bird is patiently and thoughtfully planned and painted with sensitive detail. There is something to look at in every square inch of McKey’s paintings. Please inquire (sonya@sparksgallery.com) to create your own custom bird portrait by Heather McKey.

After years exhibiting her award-winning colored pencil art, she now works exclusively in acrylic and daily paints in her home studio in North County San Diego where she lives with her husband, Nick.

Heather McKey is represented by Distinction Gallery in Escondido, California, USA.