Lea Basile-Lazarus
Artist
Biography
Lea Basile-Lazarus, born in 1954 in Jersey City, NJ, is an intuitive abstract printmaker and papermaker who has devoted most of her life to art and education. Her passion for printmaking began during her undergraduate studies at The College of New Jersey and continued to deepen as she earned her MFA with a concentration in Printmaking from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. For 25 years, she taught art in the northern suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. Lea was awarded a Fulbright to Japan and later spent three weeks in Ghana visiting schools and villages—experiences that profoundly shaped her artistic perspective and approach to teaching by immersing her in diverse cultural and educational traditions.
A printmaker for more than 40 years, Lea currently creates monoprints, one-of-a-kind prints, and paper pulp paintings that layer color, shape, image, and texture. Her work reflects her responses to the world around her, engaging with themes of politics, social justice, community, and the environment. Through experimentation with materials and contemporary techniques, she builds rich, tactile surfaces that express her thoughts and emotions about both her immediate surroundings and the broader global landscape.
Since relocating to the Pacific Northwest five years ago, Lea has continued to expand her artistic practice. While living in Gig Harbor, Washington, she exhibited at Jeffrey Moose Gallery, Bainbridge Island, WA, Mavi Contemporary Art, Gig Harbor, WA, the Robert C. Williams Museum of Papermaking, Atlanta, Georgia, and the Evanston Art Center, Evanston, Il. Deeply engaged in the local art community, she was an active member of two artist cooperatives, served on the board of the Gig Harbor Open Studio Tour (including two years as secretary and one year as president), and played a key role in reviving ArtWalk in the harbor. She was also a dedicated member and volunteer with the Peninsula Art League.
Now living in West Seattle, Lea serves on the board of the West Seattle Art Tour and is an active member of the Women Painters of Washington, the California Society of Printmakers, Seattle Print Arts, and CoCA (Center on Contemporary Art, Seattle). Her work is represented by Alki Arts in Seattle, WA, Jeffrey Moose Gallery, Bainbridge Island, WA, and Domicile Gallery and Design in Seattle, WA. Lea’s artwork is held in numerous collections across the United States.
Artist Statement
My artistic practice is a vibrant response to the world around me—whether engaging with social justice, exploring community, or reflecting on the natural environment. I work primarily in contemporary printmaking and paper pulp painting, both of which provide the visual language I need to express my ideas. Paper—whether printed on or born from fibers shaped by hand—holds the memory of the natural world and the human touch. I’m most at home using paper as my foundation or creating images from pulp; it feels organic, unpretentious, and alive. I’ve always been drawn to works of art where paper itself becomes part of the story. While each medium has its own distinct qualities, they share a physicality that keeps me deeply engaged. I often work on multiple pieces simultaneously, allowing for a dynamic and intuitive process. Layering stencils, shapes, colors, and marks, I respond viscerally to the imagery as it emerges.
In papermaking, I create marks, textures, and even text using syringes and turkey basters, guided by the gestural movement of my arm. Many of the same stencils are used across both printmaking and paper pulp painting, linking the two practices. Both are mentally and physically demanding, transforming mark-making into nuanced conversations, unspoken emotions, and silent protests. Colors may clash or converge, echoing the turbulence of the world I navigate—yet within the chaos, moments of stillness and clarity emerge, offering space to pause and breathe.
Exploring these materials and contemporary techniques has given me the tools to create unique surfaces that reflect the thoughts and emotions tied to both my immediate community and the greater world. The act of making is as vital to me as the finished piece—each gesture shaped by what I see, sense, and feel in the moment.