For over 43 years, Kelly Bennett Desrosier has lived and worked in Mid-Coast Maine, on the ancestral homeland of the Wabanaki people. Currently focused on mixed media, her work combines deeply layered elements of collage, acrylic, gouache, watercolor, ink, and pastel. Whether abstract or inspired by the land and sea, each piece is deeply influenced by the textures, colors, and spirit of Maine. Kelly has always been drawn to wild, rural landscapes, having lived in the upper Midwest, the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and now Maine. Raised on a farm and currently living on a small one, they maintain a lifelong, intimate connection to the natural world.Initially trained in Animal & Veterinary Science, Kelly worked in wildlife and agricultural fields before making a decisive shift toward art, compelled by an enduring creative drive. This turning point led to a second undergraduate degree in studio art (with a focus on printmaking), an MFA in sculpture, and a 30-year career teaching art from kindergarten through college. Today, that deep well of experience informs a dedicated, full-time studio practice. Kelly Bennett Desrosier work draws from a lifelong fascination with biology, ecology, geology, chemistry, and evolutionary science fields studied deeply as an adult. Armed with this knowledge and reverence for the natural world, their artistic approach is nonetheless guided by the imaginative lens of her 10-year-old self: a curious, mystic-minded child in awe of nature’s mysteries.