Lauren Woods (she/her) is an artist whose creative research focuses on embodied expression, nature’s consciousness and the transformative qualities of time. She works across various mediums, including painting, video and dance performances, and has exhibited her work in galleries across the US and internationally. Regionally, she has shown work at the Gadsden Museum of Art, the Huntsville Museum of Art, the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, the Mobile Museum of Art, the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts and the Wiregrass Museum of Art. She has been recognized with a 2024 Individual Visual Arts Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts and a 2025 Individual Artist Career Opportunity Grant from South Arts.
Born in Mobile, Alabama, Lauren received her MFA in painting from the New York Academy of Art after completing her BA in studio art at Spring Hill College. Currently, she is an Associate Professor of Art in the Department of Art & Art History at Auburn University, where she teaches figure drawing and painting.
In addition to painting, she has worked in partnership with Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre under the direction of Billy Blanken and 10K Productions for the visual art direction of four live multimedia dance performances performed through Culture Lab LIC in Long Island City, NY. Their most recent collaboration, SMDT Season IV: An Evening of New Classics, was supported by a 2023 New Works Grant through the Queens Arts Fund.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
SOLO
2025
Body, Landscape, Myth, McLanahan Gallery, Penn State Altoona, Altoona, PA
2024
Forest Elegy, Buckham Gallery, Flint, MI
2023
Invocation, Amelia Center Gallery, Gulf Coast State College, Panama City, FL
Alternate Worlds, HPL Galleries, Hoover Public Library, Hoover, AL
2022
Natural Rites, Rall Gallery, Doane University, Crete, NE
2021
Dream State, Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Arts, Pensacola State College, Pensacola, FL
Solo Exhibition: Dream State, The InArt Gallery (online exhibition)
2020
Mythic Nature, Gadsden Museum of Art, Gadsden, AL
2013
Semblance, University of Mobile, Mobile, AL
2010
Somewhere In Between, The Mobile Arts Council, Mobile, AL
SMALL GROUP SHOWS
2024
How to traverse a vessel, with Nikita Vishnevskiy, James May Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2022
Axis Mundi, with Sarah West, Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL
Oracle & Odyssey, with Erin Cross, Eichold Gallery, Spring Hill College, Mobile, AL
Neighbor Nature, with Wendy DesChene, Lauren Howard, and Chuck Hemard, Poole Art Gallery, University of Montevallo, Montevallo, AL
2021
Hierophanic Territories, with Liza Butts and Tracie Noles-Ross, Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL
2016
Contemporary Nostalgia, with Amanda Napper and Michael Vaughn Sims, Spring Hill College Eichold Gallery, Mobile, AL
GROUP
2026
The Secret Show, Era Contemporary at the Jane Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2025
Take Home A Nude, New York Academy of Art at Phillips, NY, NY
16th Annual Figurative Art Exhibition, Lore Dengenstein Gallery, Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA
Siren Song, Era Contemporary Gallery, Wayne, PA (online)
Under the Three Faced Moon, WomansWork.Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, NY
Gardens of Enchantment, Era Contemporary Gallery at the Hamptons Fine Art Fair, Southampton, NY
NYAA Alumni Exhibition, Tribeca Ball, New York Academy of Art, NY, NY
SHOWCASE: Faculty Exhibition 8, The Jule Museum at Auburn University, Auburn, AL
6000 Circles Project SE Regional Exhibition, Alabama Women’s Caucus for Art at Lowe Mill Arts and Entertainment, Huntsville, AL
2024
POWER DYNAMICS, Powerhouse Arts, Brooklyn, NY, Alumni Association New York Academy of Art, curated by Eric Shiner, President, Powerhouse Arts, Brooklyn, NY
SECAC 2024 Members’ Juried Exhibition, Ernest G. Welch School of Art & Design galleries, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA
2024 Fellowship Exhibition, Georgine Clarke Alabama Artists Gallery, Alabama State Council on the Arts, Montgomery, AL
Interpreting Movement: Manifestations of Expression, Utah Valley University, Orem, UT
7th Louisiana Biennial: National Juried Exhibition, Louisiana Tech University School of Design, Ruston, LA
2023
Alabama A to Z, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, AL
Nature’s not in it, NV Showroom, Santa Ana, CA
The Elastic Mind, South Gallery, Broward College South Campus, Pembroke Pines, FL
The Begonia, Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL
Enchanted Forest, Tribeca Ball, New York Academy of Art, NY, NY
2022
Negotiations: Portraits, Georgine Clarke Alabama Artists Gallery, Alabama State Council on the Arts, Montgomery, AL
SECAC 2022 Members’ Juried Exhibition, Decker Gallery, MICA, Baltimore, MD
Body Talk, Target Gallery at the Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, VA
23 Annual Will’s Creek Exhibition of Fine Art, Saville Gallery, Allegany Arts Council, Cumberland, MD,
B22: Wiregrass Biennial, Wiregrass Museum of Art, Dothan, AL
Wax and Wane, Stay Home Gallery, Paris, TN
FUTURETRO: 18th Athens Digital Arts Festival, Kotzia Square, Athens City Center, Athens, Greece,
ESTIA Day Fest, ESTIA Creative, Salvatore LaRussa Dance Theatre, Queens, NY
Tide Pools, Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL
Focus on Figures 2022, North River Arts Society, Marshfield Hills, MA
AU Faculty Exhibition 7, Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn, AL, curators: Aaron Levi Garvey, Director of Curatorial Affairs, and Jessica Hughes Hill, Curatorial Assistant, Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art Auburn, AL
2021
Six Degrees of Separation: A Retrospective Film Festival (film screening), presented by Six Degrees Dance, with works by Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre, Angie Conte, Julie Carter, Inclined Dance Project, One Day Dance, and Six Degrees Dance, New York, NY
Circle, CICA Museum (Czong Institute for Contemporary Art), Gimpo, South Korea
Our DNA, Kehler Liddell Gallery, New Haven, CT
Artfields 2021, regional juried exhibition/festival, Lake City, SC
Storied References, Northern Illinois Museum of Art, DeKalb, IL
Movements, Moments, Target Gallery at the Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, VA
2020
Quarantine, Amelia Center Gallery, Gulf Coast State College, Panama City, FL
The New Pre-Raphaelites, Harcum College and Era Contemporary Gallery, Philadelphia, PA (online exhibition)
A Figural Exhibition, The In Art Gallery, Edwardsville, IL (online exhibition)
Contaminated, Institute for Aesthetic Advocacy, Minneapolis, MN (online exhibition)
The Art of Water IV, James May Gallery, Algoma, WI (online exhibition)
Eros and Thanatos, Buckham Gallery, Flint, MI
2019
When Darkness Falls: Night Explorations, Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center, Solomon, MD
O, international juried exhibition, Portmanteau Project Space, Dayton OH
Contemporary 2019: Contemporary Figure, Western Colorado Center for the Arts, Grand Junction, CO
Artfields 2019, regional juried exhibition/festival, Lake City, SC
His-ter’-ee-uh, ARC Gallery and Educational Foundation, Chicago, IL
AU Faculty Exhibition, Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn, AL
Night: 28th Annual Strathmore Juried Exhibition, Strathmore Hall Foundation, Bethseda, MD
2018
Activating the Apparatus, Vol 2, The B Complex, Atlanta, GA, juror: Brandy Wednesday, Independent Artist, Brooklyn, NY
And Now for Something New, Vol 1, LeMieux Galleries, New Orleans, LA
Gulf Coast Contemporary: Selected Works by Artists from Lower Alabama, Tennessee Valley Museum of Art, Tuscumbia, AL
do it, conceived and curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL, curator of record: Elizabet Elliott, Executive Director, Alabama Contemporary Art Center, Mobile, AL
She is of the South, Amelia Center for the Arts, Gulf Coast State College, Panama City, FL
2016
Natural Response, Spring Hill College, and the University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL
Artfields 2016, regional juried exhibition/festival, Lake City, SC
2015
Hot Dry Men, Cold Wet Women, Mark Miller Gallery, New York, NY
2014
Hippie Priest, Honey Ramka Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
The Red Clay Survey, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
Art of the State 2014, Tennessee Valley Museum of Art, Tuscumbia, AL
2013
Valdosta National Exhibition, Valdosta State University, Valdosta, GA
2012
4×1: Artacopia, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL
20th Southeast Arts Exhibition, Mattie Kelly Arts Center, Fort Walton Beach, FL
The Figure Now, Fontbonne University, St. Louis, MO
2011
Contours, Five Independent Visions, Thomas Werner Gallery, New York, NY
2010
Decades Exhibition, The New York Academy of Art, New York, NY
You Naughty Children, 2010 Graduate Thesis Exhibition, The New York Academy of Art, New York, NY
PRODUCTION DESIGN AND PERFORMANCE COLLABORATIONS
2025
SMDT The Nutcracker Suite, scenic design, Arts on Site, New York, NY
Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre at Arts on Site, scenic design, Arts on Site, New York, NY
2023
Sheep Meadow Season IV: An Evening of New Classics, production design and video animation for performance in collaboration with Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre under the direction of Billy Blanken, and 10K Productions, Culture Lab LIC at The Plaxall Gallery, Long Island City, NY
2022
Mobile Ballet 35th Anniversary Gala, scenic design, Mobile Civic Center Theatre, Mobile, AL
2021
Circle/Cycle, dance performance and choreography, with Lori Bilbrey-Vaghefi and Ava Reding, original music Interaction-Time by Erin Cross, Lamar Studio at Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Art at Pensacola State College, Pensacola, FL
Sheep Meadow Season III: Sleeping Beauty, production design and video animation for performance/livestream in collaboration with Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre under the direction of Billy Blanken, and 10K Productions, Culture Lab LIC at The Plaxall Gallery, Long Island City, NY
2020
Sheep Meadow Season II, production design and video animation for performance/livestream in collaboration with Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre under the direction of Billy Blanken, and 10K Productions, Culture Lab LIC at The Plaxall Gallery, Long Island City, NY
2019
Body Tides, concept, production design and video animation, live performance in collaboration with Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre under the direction of Billy Blanken with original music produced by Jack Ray, Culture Lab LIC at The Plaxall Gallery, Long Island City, NY
2013
Project Mouvement in Art’s Carnival of The Animals, costume and production design, Saenger Theater, Mobile, AL
2010
Glimpses of Another Side, scenic design, Kathryn Noletto Felis, MFA concert, Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
HONORS/AWARDS/RESIDENCIES
2025
Graves Mill Farm Artist Residency, Graves Mill Farm, Madison, VA
2024
Individual Artist Career Opportunity Grant, South Arts, Atlanta, GA
College of Liberal Arts Semester Release from Teaching 2024-2025, Auburn University
2023
Thornton Clark Award, Alabama A to Z: 45th Biennial Museum Exhibition, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, AL
Individual Fellowship, Visual Arts, Alabama State Council on the Arts, Montgomery, AL
College of Liberal Arts Teaching Excellence Award, Auburn University
2022
McClure-Scanlin Visual Artist Residency Award, Lillian E. Smith Center at Piedmont University, Clayton, GA
2021
Fall 2021 Lamar Studio Artist – Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Arts, Pensacola State College, Pensacola, FL
Daniel F. Breeden Endowed Grant for Faculty Enhancement, Auburn University, Project: Contemporary Cast Sculpture Drawing: Bringing Greater Diversity and Inclusion into the Studio Art Classroom.
Athena Standards Residency, artist residency, Athens, Greece
2020
Honorable Mention, A Figural Exhibition, juror Forrest Solis, The In Art Gallery, Edwardsville, IL (online exhibition)
2019
Vermont Studio Center Residency, Johnson, VT July 2019
2016
Performing Artist of the Year Nominee, Mobile Arts Council, Mobile, AL
2015
Mobile Bay Magazine, 40 under 40, Community Leadership Award, Mobile, AL
2013
Merit Award (Third Place), Valdosta National Exhibition, Curated by Margaret Morrison, Valdosta, GA
2012
Merit Award (Third Place), 20th Southeast Arts Exhibition, Mattie Kelly Arts Center, Fort Walton Beach, FL
EDUCATION
2010 MFA, Painting, Cum Laude, The New York Academy of Art, New York, NY
2006 BA, Studio Art, Summa Cum Laude, Honors Program, Spring Hill College, Mobile, AL
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2018 – Current Associate Professor of Art, Drawing and Painting, Auburn University, Auburn, AL
2011-2017 Adjunct Instructor, The University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL
Adjunct Instructor, Spring Hill College, Mobile, AL
VISITING ARTIST PRESENTATIONS, LECTURES, AND INTERVIEWS
2025
Artist Interview, Jetten, Ryan. “Everybody’s Famous with that Ryan Guy.” Youtube interview series, Mobile, AL, April 5, 2025.
Artist talk, “Common Grounds: Creating Narratives through the Visual,” The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn, AL, February 6, 2025.
2024
Artist Interview, Bulgrin, Kendra. “12 Questions: Lauren Woods.” James May Gallery Blog, September 6, 2024.
Artist Interview, Jenkins, Amy. “Lauren Woods: Visions in Pink.” Arts Fell on Alabama Podcast, Montgomery, AL, April 8, 2024.
Visiting Artist Lecture, UVU Art & Design Lecture Series, Utah Valley University, Orem, UT, January 18, 2024
2023
Artist Interview, Bradfield, Elizabeth. “Monthly Q&A with Gibson Fay-Leblanc and Lauren Woods.” Broadsided Press, February 16, 2023.
2022
Artist Lecture, “Oracle and Odyssey,” Spring Hill College, Mobile, AL, September 23, 2022.
Artist Talk, “Axis Mundi,” with Sarah West, Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL, September 16, 2022
Artist Interview, Tuesch, Matthew. “Interview with 2022 McClure-Scanlin Visual Artist Lauren Woods.” Dope With a Splash of Lime Podcast, Lillian E. Smith Center at Piedmont University, Demorest, GA, August 3, 2022.
Figure Drawing Workshop, Doane University Department of Visual Arts, Crete, NE, February 10, 2022
2021
Artist Talk (online), “Hierophanic Territories,” Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL, October 16, 2021
Visiting Artist Lecture, “Dream State,” Pensacola State College, Pensacola, FL, August 26, 2021
Artist Interview, Moon, Troy. “Mobile Artist Lauren Woods, PSC Art Faculty Reception is Thursday.” The Pirate, Pensacola State College Digital Magazine. August 25, 2021.
Artist Panel Talk (online), “Of Fantastic Stories, Freaks and Feminism: Beyond Gender Myths in Art,” moderated by Kristen Myers, Professor and Chair, Department of Sociology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, NIU Art Museum, DeKalb, IL, February 25, 2021.
Artist Gallery Talk, “Mythic Nature,” Gadsden Museum of Art, Gadsden, AL, January 7, 2021.
2020
Artist Interview, Blanken, Billy. “Instagram Live: Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre.” New York, NY, November 30, 2020.
Artist Interview, Jordan, Caleb. “Quarantine Artist Interview: Lauren Woods.” 90.7 WKGC The Morning Mix. October 19, 2020.
2019
Artist Talk, “Creation of Body Tides,” Resident Presentation at Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT, July 14, 2019.
Artist Talk “Journey into an Internal Space,” Jule Collins Smith Museum of Art, Auburn, AL, February 14, 2019.
2018
Artist Talk, “Video Art in do it,” Artist talk along with artists Brendon Cooke and Adam R. Forrester, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, Alabama, May 31, 2018.
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
2024-current Sophiella Gallery, Mobile, AL
2021- 2023 Ground Floor Contemporary, Birmingham, AL
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
- Veloso, Jenifer Fernandes. Observations. Flint, MI: Buckham Fine Arts Project, 2024. Artwork by Lauren Woods, p. 62.
- Raab, Annie. “Fall Gallery Night and So Much More.” Urban Milwaukee, October 1, 2024.
- Placenti, Cecly. “Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre Season IV.” Six Degrees Dance, Reviews, October 2023.
- Bradfield, Elizabeth and Fay-Leblanc, Gibson. “Lorca says, ‘the duende loves the rim of the wound’.” Broadsided Press, February 16, 2023. https://broadsidedpress.org/broadsides/lorca-says-the-duende/
- Moon, Troy. “Mobile Artist Lauren Woods Discusses Mythic Time, Ballet and Even Einstein at PSC Artist Lecture.” The Pirate, Pensacola State College Digital Magazine, September 2021.
- Placenti, Cecly. “Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre Sleeping Beauty.” Six Degrees Dance, Reviews, July 2021.
- Studio Visit Magazine, Volume 48, page 190.
- Jenkins, Mark. “In the galleries: a focus on the intersection of art and movement.” Washington Post February 26, 2021.
- Audsley, Sarah. “Writer’s Notebook: Field Dress Portal.” New England Review, Volume 41, Issue 4.
- Placenti, Cecly. “Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre.” Six Degrees Dance, Reviews, January 2021.
- Hussey, Erica. “Local Spotlight: An Interview with Artist Lauren Woods.” Black Warrior Review Online, November 2019.
- East City Art Editorial Team, “Strathmore Visual Arts Presents Night: The 28th Annual Strathmore Juried Exhibition.” Eastcityart.com, January 14, 2019.
- Lee, Kevin. “MMoA Show Plugs Mobile into Global Act.” Lagniappe, March 2018.
- “The Red Clay Survey: 2014 Exhibition of Contemporary Southern Art.” hsvmuseum.org, Huntsville, AL, 2014.
- Hoff, Adrian. “An Artist’s Pointe of View.” Mobile Bay Magazine, September 2013.
- Morrison, Margaret (catalogue) Valdosta National Curator’s Statement, Valdosta State University, January 2013.
- Tafuri, Cristina (catalogue) An Imaginative Experience: Perspectives on the Human Figure, Thomas Werner Gallery, New York, NY. April 2011.
- Harrison, Thomas. “Lauren Woods Redefines the ‘Art of Dance’.” Mobile Press Register, March 19, 2011.
- Kuspit, Donald (catalogue) Tradition as Avant Garde, The New York Academy of Art, NY, NY, May 2010