Marie Lavallee's Metal Leaf Wildlife Paintings Blend Goldsmithing with Contemporary Naturalism

Mixed-media artist Marie Lavallee creates detailed portraits of birds and woodland animals using gold and copper leaf on birch panels. Her work was recently exhibited at The Other Art Fair in Los Angeles, where she was a standout artist. Lavallee first discovered painting in high school through classes at Sylvia Araya's Painting Academy in Quebec City, then pursued a career as a goldsmith before returning to painting after turning 50. She incorporates geometric metal leaf shapes as backgrounds, painting over them with fine brushstrokes to create textured plumage and fur. Her subjects include barn owls, quails, pigeons, crows, foxes, hares, squirrels, and mice, often paired to show biodiversity. Lavallee works from photo references, combining elements from multiple sources to create her envisioned creatures. She describes her artistic voice as blending detailed classical painting with bold contemporary backgrounds, giving Audubon-style bird painting a modern twist. Her studio practice involves transparent colors that blend with metal leaf, sometimes adding colored metal leaf over paintings. Lavallee feels particular connection to California quails, roadrunners, and barn owls, inspired by childhood encounters with wildlife near her family cottage. She currently lives and works in Southern California.