NOPG Member Gallery

Born in Tennessee and raised in Nashville, Celeste was encouraged to draw by her

mother, an accomplished artist, and studied in the studios of local artists throughout her

childhood and began selling small works while a teenager. She made time for painting

courses at the High Museum of Art while attending college at Emory University in Atlanta

where she completed a degree in Psychology. Her interests in this field progressed

eventually to an MA & PhD and her art took a “back seat” while Celeste worked to help

her husband, Curt, complete Dental school and start his practice. She took time off from

art to focus exclusively on two babies and returned to work part time as a psychologist

when her children begged her to “stop her volunteer jobs at their schools.” Over the years

she began to reintegrate art back into her life through painting with model groups and life

drawing classes with Kate Fetterolf and Mikki Dillon and the Southeastern Pastel Society.

Eight years ago, she decided to “switch gears” focusing explicitly on art making and, with

the free time afforded by an empty nest, she relished classes and workshops with John

de la Vega, Margaret Dyer, Burt Silverman, Marvin Mattleson, Marc Chatov and Dee

Beard Dean. When her husband retired from 30 years of dentistry in Atlanta, they decided

to travel and ultimately relocated to Vancouver, WA by way of Asheville, NC, St. Simons,

and Savannah, GA. Celeste is inspired by the beauty of the Pacific Northwest area and

Celeste works in oil paints, pastels and watercolors but has dabbled in stained glass,

metal sculpture, jewelry making, ceramics and digital photography. Her work has been

exhibited in juried shows with the Portrait Society of Atlanta, the Southeastern Pastel

Society, the Dunwoody Art Association, the Atlanta Artists Center, The Landings Art

Association, the Society of Washington Artists, and the Northwest Oil Painters Guild.  She

has received awards in a number of juried shows and is available for custom portraits and

other commissions. Her work is in private collections in the Southeast. To view more of

or email her at celeste.jones@gmail.com to request information about prices or to