about

Amy McLaren is a painter based in Rochester, New York, whose work blends loose realism with expressive gesture to reflect the fluid, unfolding nature of human experience. Amy exhibits her work regularly in both group and solo exhibitions regionally and nationally, and is represented by the Oxford Gallery in Rochester, NY. She received her MFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology and is a Senior Lecturer in Drawing and Painting, where she teaches full time.
Her practice is rooted in narrative painting shaped by her experiences as a woman, a mother, and an individual continually seeking growth. Much of Amy’s work examines the shifting relationships between who we were, who we are, and who we hope to become—an arc that mirrors the universal human condition.
Currently, she is expanding these narratives through a new body of work featuring sock puppets as symbolic stand-ins for ourselves. Imperfect yet endearing, these puppets are pieced together from the materials of their pasts, much like we are. Through them, Amy explores compassion, vulnerability, and the hope of finding common ground. These paintings celebrate the beauty in our flaws, the courage required for change, and the deep desire to be seen, understood, and loved. They serve as reminders that even in moments of unraveling, we move toward one another, stitching together a shared sense of belonging.