Closing Reception for Playful, Practical & Political Exhibit

Kellie M Hazell

artist

Born in North Carolina and now settled in Arizona, Kellie is a self-taught emerging abstract mixed media artist and speculative fiction writer informed by twenty years in molecular biology and clinical research. In addition to her scientific background, travel has played a large role in Kellie’s life and garnered a deep appreciation for unique perspectives and styles. Growing up, Kellie traveled the United States and Europe, thanks to her father’s career in the Air Force. When he was stationed at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, she realized she had found her home. After studying biochemistry and molecular biology in Indiana and Colorado, she settled with her family in Arizona. While travel has granted fascinating experiences and influences, Kellie craves each return to southern Arizona, to this space that centers her. Recently, Kellie decided to shift her clinical research gigs to a side hustle in order to pursue art and writing as her profession. She brings her love of science and passion for exploring new perspectives to her abstract paintings, experimenting with new media and new techniques as often as possible. Kellie’s art has appeared in an online exhibit by the San Fernando Valley Arts & Cultural Center, as well as locally in the Tucson area at the Steinfeld Gallery, the De La Vega Gallery, and the Desert Garden Gallery. Her work has also appeared in the Southern Arizona Arts Guild Exhibits at the Overlook Restaurant in Oro Valley. She has created Playful, Practical & Political, seventeen-piece exhibit of her work, on display at the Overlook Restaurant in 2026. When she’s not participating in art fairs and festivals in the greater Tucson area, she can be found on her balcony, soaking up views of the Santa Catalina Mountains alongside her family.