Kathleen Lunsford loves the human connection that Roanoke affords. She is a graduate of the VCU School of the Arts and has traveled extensively exhibiting her artwork. Lunsford says of Roanoke’s arts movement, “A community that is full of art is a community that solves problems.”

Lunsford was an art teacher, a working artist, and she served on the Arts Council of the Blue Ridge and the Roanoke Arts Commission. “The Roanoke community gives me a profound sense of creative joy,” she says.

Kathleen’s work is dominated by intense color and gestural figures “with a strong interest in social issues and human relationships.” For her self-portrait, she chose the beloved Grandin Theatre for its long history as a hub of artistic expression in the Valley and she represents the theater’s wonderful architectural features.