Many years ago, Therese Verner started her artistic career designing and creating custom stained glass windows. Her creations were installed in over a hundred homes throughout the Los Angeles area. After a distinguished software career, Therese returned to artistic endeavors. A self-taught artist, Therese specializes in creating paintings and mixed media works inspired by her love of nature and color harmony Therese’s artistic expression has also been inspired by cultural events such as the George Floyd murder and climate change. Therese's personal experiences with cancer and vision loss due to macular degeneration and glaucoma have also influenced her creative work. Even though she is legally blind, Therese has enough sight to create works of art to brighten others’ lives.
NOTABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Therese has curated 3 large solo exhibitions. In 2023, Therese exhibited 40+ original artworks at the Canyon Theatre Guild for 3 months. She curated 2 solo exhibitions at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts, with 50-60 pieces of art. The first show in January 2020, was highlighted in the San Diego Union Tribune Featured Artist Story.
PCPA invited Therese back for a second solo exhibition Jan 29th - Feb. 28th 2022. Therese was also featured in the same newspaper in January 2022 for her PCPA show Visions of Our World.
Therese was featured in a professional video, by Giulio Meliani, Let there be Art, as well as the Making of Let there be Art!
Therese was also filmed by ABC7 for a news feature Therese Verner, Legally Blind Artist
highlighting how her visual impairment influences her creative spirit.
Therese was awarded a 2018 Arts and Accessibility Grant by the National Arts and Disability Center.
Therese’s artwork has been exhibited and sold in many museums and galleries including: Front Porch Gallery in Carlsbad, Poway Center for the Performing Arts (PCPA), SLOMA (San Luis Obispo Museum of Art), Santa Paula Art Museum, Ontario Museum of History and Art, The Channel Islands Maritime Museum, The Latino Art Museum, The Neutra Institute Gallery & Museum, Art on 30th Ashton Gallery, San Diego, BG Gallery Santa Monica, La Galeria Gitana, SCAA Art Gallery, and the Lancaster Museum of Art CEDARFEST.
StatementExploring the natural world feeds my artistic vision. Even though my actual vision is limited, I see in my mind’s eye and connect to my hand’s movement to express that vision with bold colors, texture and expressive strokes. As the light fades from my eyes, let art by my reflection.
I selected two photographs to answer the question "what can you see?". The first, Sam in Snow, depicts my dog in an unusual SoCal snowstorm. in the second, Sam in Snow Glaucoma and MD View, I manipulated the photo to show how the light has left my peripheral vision. My paintings express how my vision loss drives me to explore different artistic techniques. I created Life is a Puzzle with abstract watercolors torn apart and reassembled to not quire fit, which is how I feel at times. I created Into the Rainbow with many overlapping layers of color. My mind and palette knife were connected, and somehow a woman appeared without me seeing her. Georgia on my Mind honors Georgia O'Keefe, whose bold strokes and vibrant colors fill my heart with joy and are a visceral connection.
CvStateCA
CountryUnited States
