Heather Clements has used art as a catalyst for mental and emotional growth since the beginning. She grew up in Northern Virginia and earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art. She spent the next 16 years in Panama City, Florida, owning art gallery and cultural venue space for 2 years, then working as curator of the local arts museum before leaving to concentrate on her main love: creating art.
Heather has been working as a professional artist since 2010, focusing her work consistently on humans’ connection with nature. Often combining playful abstractions with realistic portraits, her works have exhibited in galleries and museums all across the United States, with several solo exhibitions, many awards, including several best-in-shows. She has created many murals from the Southeast to New York City, and worked with major companies like IKEA, Lowe’s, and Domestika.
In 2018, the category 5 monstrous Hurricane Michael ravaged Panama City. Heather’s home was half destroyed and the nature she loved; 75-90% of the trees over millions of acres were wiped out. Shortly after Heather also suffered multiple personal losses and challenges, leaving her in a deep depression. After a year without creating any art, she booked a tiny off-grid treehouse in the mountains for a week with hopes of beginning to heal. Unplugged and isolated, she feared she might just cry for a week, but every morning she hiked and every day she created art. That week she clawed out of the depths of her depression, and has never been back.
Heather relocated to Asheville, North Carolina in 2023, for the thriving nature and flourishing art scene. In 2024 Hurricane Helene hit, this time sparing her home, but destroying her studio/gallery and teaching space in the River Arts District. Through nature, art, and the arts community, Heather has healed again.
Her recent work has focused on interactivity. Through paper engineering, Heather creates artwork that goes beyond a singular image with elements that move with unraveling hidden elements creating a unique narrative experience. Her first published book, “Pull Me Apart” is full of pull tabs, spin wheels, and more, with another book coming in Spring of 2026. Her interactive works have expanded onto walls as interactive murals
