Barbara Leahy-Edwards, Owner of B&L Gallery

 

Barbara Leahy-Edwards is an artist, gallery owner, retired educator, and advocate for women. Her primary focus is on that of the abstract, specializing in vibrant colors and energetic shapes. Her work showcases a wide range of emotions, all with the common underlying theme of persevering and overcoming obstacles. She takes inspiration from life experiences and challenges, nature, and the current climate of the world in which we live. Many of her pieces include an element of texture from various mediums, including recycled objects and organic materials taken from nature.

 

With over 30 years of experience in teaching and coaching women’s sports, Barbara is also the founder of the Triumphant Spirits Scholarship Award. Created in 2012 with her late husband Bob, this program provides college tuition assistance to help young women who exemplify a “triumphant spirit” as they journey towards their future.

 

Barbara has participated in a long list of shows, including the SeeMe ‘Art Takes Times

Square’ competition, where two of her paintings were digitally imposed on a 25-story

billboard in Times Square. Her popular Triumphant Spirits series “Joy” painting won the Best Painting Award as well as the People’s Choice Award in the Lincoln Park Artrageous Competition.

 

Besides the Chicagoland area, she her work has been featured in shows and galleries throughout New York City as well as in the United Kingdom and Paris. Her participation in regional, national, and international juried art shows include the Art ConneKt Show in the UK, “Journey Through Creativity”, an international exhibit in NYC, Artists Wanted “Art Takes Times Square” in NYC, and the renowned Pen and Brush Gallery in NYC. She has also been featured in shows throughout the Midwest, including the Fort Wayne Indiana Museum of Art, the Springfield Liturgical Show, the Vogt Art Center, Union Street Gallery, the Beverly Arts Center, the Art Barn, Governor State University, Cornerstone Gallery, Art & Company, Monkey Mind Gallery, Tall Grass Art Gallery, Art & Company, The Frame Shop, the Illinois State Museum in Lockport, and the Zhou B Art Center in Chicago.

 

 

Edwards was also commissioned to create paintings for charity and fundraising events in Chicago including the Joffrey Ballet, the “Pointe of Departure Exhibition”, the Glenwood School Charity, the Lady Bug Charity, and the “American Legends Show”.

 

In addition to creating and exhibiting her artwork, Edwards enjoys running the B&L Gallery in the Zhou B Art Center. Her children Elizabeth and Brian and her brother Frank Leahy are an integral part of the gallery. They help with curating monthly shows, as well as the installation and design aspects. The gallery provides an opportunity for a variety of artists to showcase their work to a vast audience.