Artist Bio

Laura McClanahan, MFA (Studio Art, 2008, Maryland Institute College of Art), is an internationally exhibited artist originally from the New York City area. She is now based in Pohoiki on Hawaiʻi Island, where she lives and works surrounded by the transformative landscape of the 2018 lava flow.

Her work is represented by East Coast galleries and has been featured in art fairs across Geoje, Miami, New York City, Santa Fe, São Paolo, Singapore, and Paris.

Locally, Laura offers original and commissioned paintings, immersive art experiences, and curatorial work through Pohoiki Gallery. Her practice extends beyond the canvas into home art installations, one-on-one artist mentoring, and group classes, where she supports others in accessing their creative voice and authentic expression.

She is the founder of Lava Coast Creative Retreat, an artist-in-residence program where artists and musicians come to Hawaiʻi for focused creation, mentorship, critique, and exhibition in a serene, elemental environment.

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Artist Statement

Laura McClanahan’s work is an intuitive exploration of both the seen and unseen realms, expressed through fluid movement and crystalline geometries suspended in resin. Her paintings emerge from a process rooted in energy, consciousness, and transformation—reflecting the dynamic patterns of nature and the inner landscape of the human experience.

Influenced by her early studies in organic architecture and her ongoing practice of sound healing meditation (www.creativefrequencies.net), Laura approaches art as a living system—where form, vibration, and intention intersect. Color becomes a language of the soul, and the act of pouring transforms into a dialogue between control and surrender.

Through layered processes of resin, movement, and frequency, she weaves visual and energetic elements into compositions that evoke flow, evolution, and spiritual alignment. Her work invites viewers to release resistance, embrace change, and attune to the deeper currents guiding their own transformation.