Cleveland-area native Charlotte Lees has a personal and deep connection to Cleveland. In high school she decided to become an artist and took classes at the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Cleveland Institute of Art. Charlotte later graduated cum laude from Bowling Green State University with a BS and went on to receive her MA from Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Institute of Art.

She has had numerous exhibitions throughout the United States, including an exhibition entitled, On/Off the Wall in the Desert Art Collection of Palm Desert, California (2007). She has been recognized with numerous awards including the Frances E. Willard Award Alpha Phi International Outstanding Career Achievement Award (2002). One recognition that particularly stands out to Charlotte is the Ohio Arts Council Individual Artists Fellowship, which she received in 1995. Since Cleveland has been Charlotte”s home for many years now, she was honored to have received the Fellowship, with which she explored ancient musical instruments. Influenced by Pre-History, African, Egyptian, Greek, and Indian cultures, she says that she finds “by studying these societies I am able to create contemporary images that have historical and cultural references. This blending of souls imparts a more meaningful context to my work.”

As a sculptor she works with a variety of media that include wood, glass, and various metals. Charlotte describes herself as a “life-long learner” and continues to study at various art institutions. She is “constantly trying to expand [her] artistic vocabulary and looks forward to the challenges of developing new sculptural images.”