Shelley Zentner

Shelley Zentner’s constantly evolving style is deeply rooted in the Welsh art tradition - dark, dramatic and filled with poetry. Expertly rendered in charcoal and oils, her work can be described as narrative impressionist realism.

Shelley began figure drawing at age 11, staged her first exhibition as a professional artist at 20, and became a gallery owner at 25. After a career hiatus involving burnout, travel, falling in love, becoming a mother, teaching art, and surviving cancer, Shelley has resumed her full-time artist status.

Studying art with the force of nature Peter Prendergast in the ’90s, Shelley discovered that her family’s strong work ethic also applied to art. Prendergast’s shouted mantra to his students was to KEEP LOOKING! That advice stuck. Whether painting landscapes, victims of war or psychologically challenging portraits, Shelley’s willingness to confront the complicated truth of existence with a sense of hope is the hallmark of her work.

Shelley works and lives with her family in Lake Tahoe, California.

Art & Visual Culture (B.A) Hons
University of the West of England, UK 1997

Still Life Workshop with Carol Marine, Santa Fe 2007

Portrait Workshop with Steven Assael, Bay Area Classical Atelier, CA 2017

Classical Figure Painting Workshop with Juliette Aristedes, Scottsdale School of Art, AZ 2018

Solo: Sierra Arts Foundation, Reno, NV. Call & Response: Visions of the forest after Wildfire.

Reno International Art Show, Reno Sparks Convention Center, NV SEPTEMBER 8 – 11, 2022

Foyer Gallery, Lake Tahoe Community College, South Lake Tahoe, CA. Fundamental Freedoms

The Dorion Gallery, Sacramento, CA. New Life: Kokanee

The Riverside Gallery, Truckee, CA. New Life

Llanberis Mountain Film Festival, UK - Featured Artist

Brewery Arts Center, Kendal UK (in conjunction with Kendal Mountain Film Festival) The Colour of Fear
Penrhyn Castle, Bangor, UK. Climbing the Walls Touring Exhibition

Oriel Plas Glyn y Weddw, UK. Climbing the Walls Touring Exhibition

Ogilvy & Estill Gallery, Conwy UK. Climbing the Walls

Limited Editions Gallery, Bristol, UK. Intimate Illusions

The Boston Tea Party, Bristol, UK. Recent work from the Basque Country

The Bristol Guild of Applied Art, UK. Leap of Faith

Group: Emanate Gallery, South Lake Tahoe, CA
High Vibe Society, South Lake Tahoe, CA Tahoe Activist Artists: Rising from the Fire

Tahoe Mountain Lab, South Lake Tahoe, CA Tahoe Activist Artists: We the People

Halden Gallery, Lake Tahoe Community College, South Lake Tahoe, CA Faculty Show

Nevada Muse...