Biography

Kim Lordier is a California native whose paintings explore the design of nature and the transformative power of light. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Academy of Art University and the University of San Francisco. Though her early career included work as a flight attendant and competitive horsewoman, the events of September 11, 2001, became a turning point, solidifying her commitment to painting as her life’s work.

Working primarily in pastel, Lordier is recognized for her rich color, strong value structure, and tapestry-like mark making. Her work reflects a deeply personal and spiritual connection to the outdoors, distilling the Western landscape into bold patterns of light, atmosphere, and mood.

After more than two decades devoted to painting the American West from life and in the studio, Lordier has woven her lifelong passion for the horse into her compositions. Drawn to their strength, grace, and quiet intelligence, she places horses within their natural environment ‘ portraying working stock, performance horses, and wild mustangs as both powerful and gentle beings, bound to the land and to humanity.

Her paintings are included in public and private collections nationwide and have been exhibited at the Autry Museum of the American West, the Coors Western Art Show, Maynard Dixon Country, the National Arts Club, the Salmagundi Club, Forbes Galleries in New York, the Haggin Museum, Pasadena Museum of California Art, Irvine Museum, Hilbert Museum, and the Laguna Art Museum.

Lordier’s work has appeared on the covers of Art of the West, PleinAir Magazine, Southwest Art, and The Pastel Journal, and has been featured in Western Art & Architecture and Fine Art Connoisseur. She has received numerous honors at major plein air events, national pastel society exhibitions, museum shows, and international competitions.

She is a Signature Member of the Plein Air Painters of America, the California Art Club, the Pastel Society of America, and the Laguna Plein Air Painters Association, and is a Pastel Laureate of the Pastel Society of the West Coast. A highly regarded instructor, Lordier teaches workshops throughout the country.

EDUCATION:
1985-1989 Academy of Art, San Fransisco, CA, BFA Illustration,
1985-1989 University of San Francisco, CA, BFA Illustration
Studied with: Skip Whitcomb, Lorenzo Chavez, Ned Jacob

SELECTED AWARDS AND HONORS:

2026 California Desert Plein Air Festival, Best of Show
2025 Pastel Society of the West Coast- Received PASTEL LAUREATE Distinction
2025 American Tonalist Society, Shades of Gray III, BLUE RIDGE/ROSEMARY AWARD
2025 PSWC MOOS Online Show, 1st Place
2025 PSWC Out of Bounds!, Morro Bay Art Center, Morro Bay CA, 2nd Place
2025 Yellow, Red Rock Pastel Society International Online Exhibition, 3rd Place
2024 Plein Air Salon, 13th Annual Plein Air Salon Final, BEST PASTEL
2023 American Tonalist Society, Shades of Gray ll, Curt Hanson Best of Show Award
2023 PSWC PASTELS USA: 99 Voices, First Place Contemporary Impressionism Duane Wakeham/Richard Sutherland
2023 Plein Air Salon, June, Third Place Award
2023 Plein Air Salon, July, Best Pastel Award
2023 Plein Air Salon, April, Best Bird and Animal Award

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS / GROUP
2026 Plein Air Painters of America Heart of America, Thunderbird Foundation for the Arts, Mt. Carmel, Utah
2026 Ojai Mystic, Ojai Museum, Ojai CA
2026 VIP & Featured Artist California Desert Plein Air, Palm Desert CA
2025 Catalina Island Conservancy, Wild Side Show
2025 California Art Club, Echo’s of Yosemite, St. Mary’s Museum, Moraga CA
2025 Wild Women Paint the West at Illume Gallery West, Philipsburg MT
2025 California Art Club’s, 114th Annual Gold Medal Exhibition, Torrence CA
2025 International Association of Pastel Societies, 14th Master Circle Division
2024 California Art Club’s 113th, Annual Gold Medal, Hilbert Museum
2024 Catalina Island Conservancy, Wild Side Show
2024 American Tonalist Society, Best in Tonalism Online
2024 Pacifica Art League, Iconic California- Plein Air Show
2023 Coors Western Art Exhibit and Sale, Denver, CO
2023 American Tonalist Society, Shades of Gray ll, Salmagundi Club
2023 Catalina Island Conservancy, Wild Side Exhibition and Sale, Newport Beach, CA
2023 Pastel Society of West Coast, PASTELS USA- 99 Voices
2023 Holton Studio Gallery, On the Threshold: Ellen Howard, Tia Kratter, Kim Lordier, Berkeley, CA

REPRESENTATION:
Ballard’s Fine Art, Sheridan WY
Wild Horse Gallery, Steamboat Springs, CO
Holton Studio and Gallery, Berkeley, CA
Huse Skelly Gallery, Newport Beach, CA
Illume Gallery West, Philipsburg, MT
Carmel Fine Art, Carmel, CA
Thunderbird Foundation for the Arts, UT

AFFILIATIONS:
Plein Air Painters of America- Signature Member
California Art Club- Signature Member
Laguna Plein Air Painters Association- Signature Member
Pastel Society of the West Coast- Pastel Laureate
Pastel Society of America- Signature Member