Facing East

Leah Merriman is native to St. Louis, working primarily in encaustics to create ethereal, layered abstract landscapes on wood and paper. She also creates detailed illustrations of urban scenery and architecture and will often combine the two.

Merriman was influenced heavily by personal childhood and young adult illnesses and often found that being able to escape her own physical situation was only possible through her mind. She creates worlds you can "go into” and look around. Places you can stay in for a while, watch the scenery shift light, textures and colors in conjunction with the time of day. By practicing stillness and the awareness of being in the moment, an appreciation of your own mind’s ability to travel inward can be honed while still being acutely aware of your immediate physical world, striking an intriguing balance through the marriage of patience and escapism.

Merriman apprenticed in sculpture and illustration under local St. Louis Master Artist Rudolph Torrini in her late teen and early adult years.
She studied Drawing and Sculpture at Fontbonne University in St. Louis as well as photography and videography at Webster University, St. Louis, MO. She